FIRST REPORT OF GRAPEVINE DEFORMATION VIRUS AND GRAPEVINE ANATOLIAN RING SPOT VIRUS IN IRAN

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Viral diseases are major limiting factors for grapevine (Vitis vinifera) production in northwest Iran, in the vineyards of which samples were collected from vegetating symptomatic plants dur- ing summer 2010. Total nucleic acid (TNA) was extracted from the leaves of 137 vines by the silica capture method and used as templates for RT-PCR using random hexamer primers. PCR frag- ments 371 and 425 bp in size were amplified using two pairs of primers for the specific recognition of Grapevine deformation virus (GDefV) and Grapevine Anatolian ringspot virus (GARSV), respectively (Digiaro et al., 2007). A GDefV-specific 371 bp DNA fragment was amplified from 1 of the 137 samples. The vine infected by this virus displayed distorted and mottled leaves with asymmetric blades, irregular branching of the canes and short internodes, as reported from Turkey (Gokalp et al., 2003). A GARSV-specific 425 bp DNA fragment was amplified from an- other of the 137 vines, which showed distorted and mottled leaves, asymmetric blades and chlorotic spots, i.e. symptoms that do not correspond to those shown by Turkish vines affected by the same virus (Cigsar et al., 2003). Such diverse symptomatology may be accounted for by differences in the genotype of GARSV isolates, or in grapevine cultivars, or a combination of both. On the basis of these data, we conclude that GDefV and GARSV are present in Iran, from where they are reported for the first time. Both viruses were discovered in Turkey in 2003 (Gokalp et al., 2003; Cigsar et al., 2003) but have not been found elsewhere.