CUCUMBER MOSAIC VIRUS’AS A MAJOR RESPONSIBLE FOR TOMATO EPIDEMICS IN SOUTHERN ITALY.

Severe and spreading infections were first noticed at the end of June – beginning of July 1987 in some areas of the Salerno province (Campania region).

In the summer of 1988 extensive viral outbreaks were recorded, particularly in canning tomato crops of some southern Italian regions (Apulia, Basilicata and Campania). The four prevailing diseases in the field, epidemics in scale and largely separated from the others, were charcterized by the following symptoms: (a) sudden progressive necrosis and death of the whole plant; (b) severe deformation of leaves (fern leaf and shoestring) accompanied by stunting of plants and bushy growth; (c) internal browning of fruits without deformation and discoloration of the foliage; (d) leaf curly and sun blotch-like spots on the fruits.

Regardless of any of the above disease syndromes, plant always showed mixed infections of cucumber mosaic cucumovirus (CMV) and an ordinary (non-necrotic) strains of potato potyvirus Y (PVY). In addition plants affected by necrosis consistently hasted the CMV known as CARNA 5. The biological and structural characterization of this CARNA 5 and its relationship to the necrosis outbreaks is presently under investigation.

The results of preliminary trials of field control are reported.

III International Symposium on Processing Tomatoes

D. Gallitelli, C. Vovlas, A. Di Franco, C. Cariddi, A. Crescenzi, A. Ragozzino

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1990.277.29