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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Stoneville, Mississippi » Crop Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #392458
Research Project: Utilizing Conventional and Molecular Approaches to Enhance Seed and Fiber Quality Traits, and Conducting a National Cotton Variety Testing Program

Location: Crop Genetics Research

Title: First report of pothos latent virus infecting upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) in the United States

Author
item SABANADZOVIC, NINA ABOUGHANEM - Mississippi State University
item ALLEN, THOMAS - Mississippi State University
item Scheffler, Jodi
item SABANADZOVIC, SEAD - Mississippi State University

Submitted to: Plant Disease
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/22/2022
Publication Date: 12/22/2022
Citation: Sabanadzovic, N., Allen, T.W., Scheffler, J.A., Sabanadzovic, S. 2022. First report of pothos latent virus infecting upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) in the United States. Plant Disease. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-10-22-2325-PDN.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-10-22-2325-PDN

Interpretive Summary: A virus called Pothos Latent Virus (PoLV) is known to infect horticultural plants and food crops. It can survive in the soil and infect plants growing in that soil. Fungi also growing in the soil can help spread the virus. Previously PoLV was not reported in the United States, but a recent study identified the virus in cotton plants. This is the first report of the virus on the North American continent and more studies are needed to see how widespread it is, what plants it can infect and its affect on U.S. agricultural production.

Technical Abstract: Pothos latent virus (PoLV) is an RNA virus originally discovered in Italy on pothos (Scindapsus aureus), an internationally popular horticultural plant. It has since been reported on pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan), gentian (Eustoma grandiflorum), and other crops in India and Taiwan, but had not been identified on the North American continent. In 2019, while conducting a survey for cotton leafroll dwarf virus (CLRDV) in Mississippi, two plants were identified with PoLV as verified by PCR analysis and sequencing. The samples found showed identities ranging from 90.5% to 94.3% with three PoLV genome sequences available in GenBank. Based on previous results for this soil-borne virus, it was transmitted via soil either involving vectors belonging to the fungal genera Olpidium and/or Polymyxa (i.e., cucumber leaf spot virus, maize white line mosaic virus), or without a vector. Previous studies on PoLV demonstrated low-rate experimental transmission through the soil with no apparent involvement of specific vectors. The results indicate the presence of PoLV in the U.S. and further study is needed to evaluate the impact of this virus on horticultural and row crops.