First report of Iris yellow spot virus infecting onion in the Pichincha and Tungurahua provinces of Ecuador

Description: Onion (Allium cepa) is one of the most important vegetable crops and is widely cultivated throughout the world. In Ecuador onion is grown on an area of 16,000 ha with a production of 103,316 tonnes (Ministerio de Agricultura, Ganader?a, Acuacultura y Pesca, 2012). Iris yellow spot virus (IYSV) was first reported in Idaho, United States of America in 1993 and has since spread to many other onion-producing areas in the world (Gent et al., 2006). IYSV is an emerging virus and belongs to the family Bunyaviridae, genus Tospovirus. IYSV infects monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plants (Kritzman et al., 2000) and can be transmitted by mechanical inoculation and by Thrips tabaci in a persistent manner (Cort?z et al., 1998). During April 2015, straw-coloured, irregularly shaped, chlorotic or necrotic lesions on leaves were observed (Fig. 1) in two onion fields, one in the province of Pichincha and the other in Tungurahua in Ecuador. The disease incidence observed in both fields was 10-15% and plants were heavily infested with thrips. Based on symptomatology, a tospovirus infection was suspected.
Ministerio De Agricultura, Ganader?a, Acuacultura Y Pesca, Agrocalidad
http://www.ndrs.org.uk/article.php?id=033016

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