Document Type : Research Article
Authors
1
Plant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran
2
Ph.D. Student of Plant Pathology, Plant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran
3
Postdoctoral Researcher, Plant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran
Abstract
Viruses are among the major limiting factors in strawberry cultivation worldwide. Over a decade of research on strawberry-infecting viruses in Iran, valuable insights into their occurrence and molecular characteristics were provided. In these studies, seven known viruses were identified using molecular techniques such as RT-PCR and next-generation sequencing. In addition, four novel viral species were isolated from strawberry, and strawberry was identified as a natural host of Ourmia melon virus. The known viruses included strawberry crinkle virus, strawberry mottle virus, strawberry pallidosis-associated virus, crinivirus 3 and 4, strawberry polerovirus 1, and strawberry virus 3, while the newly identified viruses comprised strawberry Kurdistan virus, strawberry polerovirus 2, and strawberry viruses 4 and 5. Furthermore, the molecular and biological characteristics of strawberry Kurdistan virus were determined, confirming it as a novel crinivirus. The results also revealed frequent mixed infections of these viruses in strawberry fields. Considering the extensive cultivation of strawberry in Iran and the lack of well-defined resistant cultivars, these viruses may pose a serious threat to strawberry production in the country.
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