شناسائی زنجرک ناقل ویروس پیچیدگی برگ زرد جعفری

Department of Plant Protection, College of Agriculture, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran
Parsley yellow leaf curl virus (PYLCV) (family Geminiviridae) was first reported in 2020 as a distinct geminivirus from vegetable growing farms in Kerman province. Although the identity of the PYLCV has been confirmed as a distinct geminivirus by International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, until now it has not been classified in 14 geminivirus genera due to its distinct genome. In this research, the transmission ability of PYLCV by two leafhopper species was studied. Accordingly, two leafhoppers Circulifer haematoceps and Austroagallia sp. were collected from vegetable farms in Rudbar-e-Junob (Kerman province) with insect sweep net and separately caged on healthy parsley plants using plastic cylinder under greenhouse conditions. After several generations, leafhoppers were tested by the PCR assay using PYLCV specific primers to assure their freedom from the PYLCV infection. Both groups of leafhoppers were confined to PYLCV infected parsley plants which had been previously agroinoculated with PYLCV infectious clone for acquisition of the virus. Subsequently, one female and one male leafhoppers were confined on healthy parsley plants in the plastic cage for virus inoculation. The experiment was replicated twice. After ten days, only inoculated parsley plants by Austroagallia sp. fed on infected parsley showed typical PYLCV symptoms including marginal leaf curling, yellowing and necrosis, and dwarfing. The PYLCV infection of inoculated parsley plants by Austroagallia sp. was confirmed by the PCR assay using PYLCV specific primer pairs. Although Austroagallia sp. has been previously reported as the vector of phytoplasma disease in Iran, to the best of our knowledge it is the first report of the virus transmission by this leafhopper in the world. Identification of the leafhopper species of the genus Austroagallia using male genitalia and identification of other natural hosts of PYLCV are in progress.