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Title: NEW PRIMER SETS DISTINGUISH THE CUCURBIT YELLOW VINE BACTERIUM FROM AN INSECT ENDOSYMBIONT

Author
item MELCHER, U. - OKLAHOMA STATE UNIV.
item MITCHELL, F. - TEXAS A&M UNIV.
item Pair, Sammy
item FLETCHER, J. - OKLAHOMA STATE UNIV.
item Bruton, Benny

Submitted to: American Phytopathological Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/13/1998
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Cucurbit yellow vine (YV) disease is associated with a gamma-3 proteobacterium, the YV bacterium (YVB). A pair of 16S rDNA oligonucleotide primers, YV1/YV2, amplified by PCR a 640 bp fragment from diseased plants but not from healthy plants or tested bacteria (Avila et al., Phytopathology 88:428). In a search for YVB insect vectors, several field collected leafhoppers were PCR-positive with YV1/YV2. The sequence of amplified fragments differed from that of YVB in over 30 positions but from that of an endosymbiont (BEV) of Euscelidius variegatus in only a few positions, suggesting that these leafhoppers harbor BEV or a closely related bacterium. New primer pairs were designed to differentiate YVB and BEV. BEV1/BEV2 (BEV nt 170-186 and 471-452) amplified an expected 302 bp fragment from YV1/YV2-positive insects but not from YV plants. YV1/YV4 (YV4 is YVB nt 471-454) amplified an expected 409 bp fragment from YV plants but not from YV1/YV2-positive insects. Databank searches revealed no other 16S rDNA sequences that should be amplifiable with these primers.