İzmir, Aydın, Manisa ve Balıkesir illerinde üretilen kabakgillerdeki viral etmenlerin tanılanması ve yaygınlıklarının belirlenmesi

Abstract

A survey of viruses in the major cucurbit growing areas of four provinces (Izmir, Aydin, Manisa and Balikesir) covering 278 fields was conducted in the years of 2003 and 2004 and a total of 618 plant samples were collected from cucumber, melon, watermelon, squash and pumpkin plants. During the survey, the most common virus symptoms in plants were mosaic, mottling, yellowing, curling, distortion, stunting and vine decline. The collected samples were firstly analyzed for viruses by DAS-ELISA and later, infected ones were mechanically inoculated to certain test plants. The mean rates of incidence of tested viruses on the basis of fields surveyed in the provinces were changed between 4.98 and 15.60 %. The results revealed that 42 % of plant samples was infected with WMV-2, CMV, WMV-1 and ZYMV. WMV-2 was the most prevalent virus in the infected cucurbit plants with the ratio of 21.5 % and occurred in melon, squash and pumpkin samples. CMV was observed in cucumber (29.7 %), squash (5.2 %) and melon (3.4 %). It was seen that WMV-1 was only present in watermelon (24.0 %) while the samples from melon and pumpkin plants were infected with ZYMV at the rates of 2.8 % and 4.4 %, respectively. To our present knowledge, this is the first report of WMV-1 in watermelon plants grown in Aegean region. Electron microscopic examination of the negatively stained, partially purified preparation from infected plants revealed the virus had filamentous particles measuring 760-780 x 12 nm in size. Mixed infections were relatively frequent in melon, pumpkin and squash plants. SqMV and CGMMV were not detected in any cucurbit samples tested. The biological tests conducted with infected samples confirmed the results of DAS-ELISA.