Bacterial pathogens associated with citrus huanglongbing-like symptoms in southern Iran

Huanglongbing (HLB) also known as citrus greening, is a destructive disease of citrus and now, is considered as a new emergence and spread out threat to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) citrus production. In a survey conducted in southern Iran in ۲۰۱۳-۲۰۱۴, ۷۷ citrus samples exhibiting symptoms of HLB were collected. Single-step and nested polymerase chain reactions (PCR) were employed to determine the presence of the phloem-limited bacterial pathogens ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’(CLas), phytoplasma and Spiroplasma citri. Both CLas and phytoplasma were detected in HLB-affected citrus trees as co-infection (۷.۷۹%) and single infection (۱۰.۳۸% for phytoplasma and ۴۲.۸۵% for CLas). According to the proposed ۱۶S rDNA-based phytoplasma classification scheme, the HLB-associated phytoplasma from this study was a member of peanut witches’broom (۱۶SrII) phytoplasma group. This is the first report of association of a phytoplasma with HLB in sweet lime in the world and first record of association of CLas with sour orange (Citrus aurantium L.) and sweet lime in Iran.

کلیدواژه ها:

'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' ، Citrus greening ، Phytoplasma ، Citrus ، Iran