Tomato leaf curl virus and Cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite can cause mild transient symptoms in cotton

Abstract

Tomato leaf curl virus (ToLCV) from Australia is a monopartite begomovirus which is naturally associated with a DNA satellite, a vestigial betasatellite. Cotton leaf curl disease is caused by a complex consisting of one or more begomoviruses (eight species have been identified so far) associated with a single DNA β satellite named as Cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite (CLCuMB). ToLCV and CLCuMB caused mild symptoms in cotton plants 1821 days post-inoculation. The mild symptoms caused by ToLCV and CLCuMB in cotton plants began to diminish 6 weeks post-inoculation and completely disappeared 810 weeks post-inoculation, raising the possibility that ToLCV may lack some factor(s) essential for persistent systemic infection of cotton. © Australasian Plant Pathology ociety 2010.