First Detection of Xylella fastidiosa Infecting Cherry (Prunus avium) and Polygala myrtifolia Plants, in Mallorca Island, Spain

Abstract

Xylella fastidiosa, a quarantine organism in the European Union (EU), causes diseases in a wide variety of plants such as almond, cherry, grape, citrus, elm, olive and coffee trees and many ornamental plants. Since the detection of the bacterium in Italy (2013), where it is associated to a severe epidemic on olive trees, the pathogen has also been detected in France (2015) and Germany (2016) (EPPO, 2016). Due to the recent outbreaks and to different interceptions, the EU has implemented annual surveys in its Member States to prevent new introductions or the spread of this harmful organism. During official surveys in late autumn 2016 in Mallorca Island, Spain, some cherry and Polygala myrtifolia plants located in a garden center near the locality of Manacor showed symptoms of marginal leaf scorch, leaf chlorosis, defoliation, and general decay. DNA was extracted from leaf veins and petioles of symptomatic leaves using the CTAB extraction method (EPPO, 2016). DNA extracts were tested for the presence of X. ...