Archivio Journal of Plant Pathology

Abstract:

Leek yellow stripe virus (LYSV), genus Potyvirus, family Potyviridae (King et al., 2011) is the most common and important virus infecting a wide range of Allium worldwide. The aim of this study was to detect and identify LYSV in leek and garlic plants originating in central Poland, and also materials from Belgium, Egypt, and Spain purchased in Polish markets in April 2014. Randomly collected 178 samples were tested by a double-antibody sandwich enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA), according to the manufacturer's instructions (DSMZ, Braunschweig, Germany). All leek plants tested negative for LYSV, whereas 31 of 120 garlic bulbs tested positive. The presence of LYSV was confirmed by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR using total RNA extracted with the silica capture method (Boom et al., 1990; Malinowski, 1997) and primers 1-LYSV/2-LYSV (Parrano et al., 2012) designed to amplify a part of the N-terminal domain of the coat protein (CP) gene of the virus (363 bases). A sequence of the partial CP genes of the 12 LYSV isolates was submitted to GenBank (Accession Nos KM032272-KM032283). BLAST analysis of Polish sequences showed 96-99% identity at the nucleotide and amino acid levels. Sequences of Egyptian isolates, first representatives from this locations, showed 92 and 95% nucleotide and amino acid identities, respectively. However Spanish isolates revealed 95% and 97% nucleotide and amino acid identities, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of LYSV in foreign and Polish garlic plants available for purchase in central Poland. The accurate identification of viruses present in garlic plants, especially in imported plant material, will help to use the appropriate strategies to reduce viral incidence in garlic-growing areas.