First Report of Tobacco streak virus Infecting Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) in Maharashtra, India

Abstract

Safflower, Carthamus tinctorius L. (Asteraceae), is extensively cultivated in India, China, and other parts of Asia for edible oil, dyeing agent, and its medicinal value. In 2003, safflower entry (NARI-6) in the All-India Coordinated Research Project on Oilseeds (Safflower) grown in the experimental fields of M/s Syngenta India Ltd., Aurangabad (Maharashtra State, India) exhibited symptoms of veinal and leaf necrosis, necrotic streaks on the stem, necrosis of the terminal bud, and ultimately plant death. The disease was attributed to Tobacco streak virus (TSV) because sunflower growing adjacent to safflower showed similar symptoms caused by TSV (1). Mechanical inoculations of sap from symptomatic safflower leaves caused typical symptoms of TSV (local, irregular, necrotic rings, veinal necrosis, and systemic veinal necrosis) on Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. cv. C-152 and Phaseolus vulgaris (L.) cv. Topcrop, and symptoms of local, necrotic lesions, veinal necrosis, and systemic necrosis of leaf and growing bud on Arachis hypogaea L. cv. JL-24. Sap-inoculated safflower cv. Manjeera showed chlorotic and necrotic local lesions followed by systemic leaf necrosis, leading to necrosis and death of the terminal bud. Safflower cvs. A-1, BIP-2, Co-1, and Bheema (10 plants of each cultivar) inoculated with sap from safflower plants showing typical TSV symptoms did not show any visible symptoms except stunting, but six to nine plants of each cultivar tested positive for TSV using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests. In direct antigen coating-ELISA, the virus reacted positively with antiserum produced to an isolate of TSV from peanut (2) and to antiserum to TSV (ATCC-PVAS 276 for Datura stramonium), but did not react to peanut bud necrosis tospovirus antiserum. Examination of leaf extracts using leaf-dips and immunosorbent electron microscopy with the antiserum of TSV-peanut isolate showed isometric particles resembling those in the genus Ilarvirus. To our knowledge, this is the first report of an isolate of Tobacco streak virus infecting safflower. References: (1) R. D. V. J. Prasada Rao et al. J. Oilseeds Res. 17:400, 2000. (2) A. S. Reddy et al. Plant Dis. 86:173, 2002.

New Experimental Hosts of Tobacco streak virus and Absence of True Seed Transmission in Leguminous Hosts

“…So far, natural occurrence of TSV in India has been reported from sunflower (H. annuus) [3,27,28], groundnut (A. hypogaea) [29], cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), sunn-hemp (Crotalaria juncea), mungbean (Vigna radiata) [3], okra (Abelmoschus esculentus), cucumber (Cucumis sativa), gherkin (C. anguria) [21,22], safflower (Carthamus tinctorious) [4], chilli (Capsicum annuum) [15], urdbean (V. mungo) [23], nizer (Guizotia abyssinica) [1], soybean (Glycine max) [2]. In the similar manner, natural infection of TSV has been reported from other countries: horticultural crops: Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) [18], crane berry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) [17], dahlia (Dahlia variabilis) [24]; agricultural crops: Solanaceous crops: pepper (Capsicum spp.)…”

Chemical Management of Whiteflies in Sunflower

“…Sucking pests generally occurs at early stage of crop and its damage continues till grain filling stage. Among all sucking pests, leaf hopper causes major loss of 46 per cent (Anon., 1997), thrips are involved in transmission of sunflower bud necrosis virus (Chander Rao, 2002) and whiteflies are of prime importance which under favourable conditions pose threat to the crop, which do not cause direct damage but cause enormous loss indirectly as vector of viral disease (Govindappa et al, 2011).…”

Presence and molecular characterization of cucumber mosaic virus on safflower in Serbia

“…Safflower is attacked by many diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses, and suffers from physiological disorders due to abiotic stresses (Patil et al, 1993). Safflower is a natural host of cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV), lettuce mosaic virus (LMV) (Klisiewiez, 1965(Klisiewiez, ,1966Tomas, 1981), turnip mosaic virus (Klisiewiez, 1983), and tobacco streak virus (TSV) (Chander Rao et al, 2003).…”