Distribution, host plants and vector mites of the citrus leprosis virus in Colombia

Authors: GUILLERMO, LEON - Colombian Corporation Of Agriculture And Livestock- Agrosavia; CAMPOS PINZON, JUAN CARLOS - Colombian Corporation Of Agriculture And Livestock- Agrosavia; GUEVARA, YUDY ALEJANDRA - Colombian Corporation Of Agriculture And Livestock- Agrosavia; Roy, Avijit

Submitted to: Extension Reports
Publication Type: Research Notes
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/5/2022
Publication Date: 7/1/2023
Citation: Guillermo, L.M., Campos Pinzon, J., Guevara, Y., Roy, A. 2023. Distribution, host plants and vector mites of the citrus leprosis virus in Colombia. Extension Reports. https://doi.org/10.21930/agrosavia.investigation.7406429.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21930/agrosavia.investigation.7406429

Interpretive Summary: This work is the result of collecting several species of plant samples other than citrus from different regions in Colombia. Virus species/strain specific RT-qPCR assays were used to detect positive infection of caused different species/strain of CiLV: CiLV-C, CiLV-C2 and CiLV-C2H using plant tissues or mite vectors (Brevipalpus yothersi) total RNA. We detected CiLV viruses in multiple hosts plants for the first time in Colombia those are belonging to the families Araceae, Apocynaceae, Ariliaceae, Asparagaceae, Cannaceae, Clusiaceae, Costaceae, Commelinaceae, Cycadaceae, Heliconiaceae, Hydrangeaceae, Iridaceae, Marantaceae, Orchidaceae, Passifloraceae, Rosaceae, Smilacaceae, Solanaceae, Strelitziaceae and Zingiberaceae. Most botanical families diagnosed with CiLV infections were associated with more than one virus. The families Araceae, Orchideaceae, Rutaceae and Zingiberaceae were the ones with the highest incidence in this type of mixed infections. Finally, the presence of CiLV in ornamental species, fruit trees and flowers, as well as the wide distribution of these viruses in different regions and departments of Colombia, represents a high risk for citrus production and the export of several agricultural products of the country, such as passion fruit, roses, orchids and, different export plant species those can be hosts of Brevipalpus mites.

Technical Abstract: One of the greatest limitations to global agricultural production is the presence of pests and diseases that affect crops and influence their health, reduce their yield and force, in most cases, control measures to be carried out, which increases production costs. Citrus leprosis is classified, perhaps, one of the most important citrus quarantine diseases in the world. It is caused by several species of viruses belonging to the two distinct virus genera and can be transmitted by different mite species of the genus Brevipalpus. Both agents are present in Colombia and in most countries from Mexico, Central America, Caribbean islands, and South America, but absent in North America, Europe, Africa (except South Africa), and Asia. Hence its importance as a quarantine disease. This work is the result of long years of cooperative research between the Colombian Agricultural Research Corporation (AGROSAVIA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It includes aspects such as collecting samples in different regions of the country and several species of plants, other than citrus, which allowed us to affirm and document the wide distribution of the disease in the Colombian territory and, in addition, the detection by molecular means of the presence of the disease. viruses in different plant species that had not yet been reported in the world. Consequently, these results are a great contribution to the knowledge of the disease, its distribution in the country, its alternate host plants, and its relationship with the transmitting mites. The work provides knowledge and previously unknown fundamental factors that must be considered for the detection, legal control, and management of the disease in the country.