Identification and molecular characterization of the blueberry stunt phytoplasma in Canada Rosete Yaima Arocha1,*, Schilder Annemiek2, Lambert Liette3, Scott James1,4 1Sporometrics, 219 Dufferin Street, Suite 20C, Toronto, ON M6K 3J1, Canada 2Center for Integrated Plant Systems, Michigan State University, 578 Wilson, Rm. 105 CIPS, East Lansing, MI-48824, USA 3Quebec Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ), 177 St-Joseph, office 201, Sainte-Martine, Quebec, J0S 1V0, Canada 4Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, 223 College Street, Toronto ON M5T 1R4, Canada *Corresponding author e-mail: Yaima Arocha Rosete (yarosete@sporometrics.com)
Online published on 2 January, 2015. Abstract Blueberry farms in Quebec, Canada, were recently surveyed for phytoplasma-associated disease presence. Farmers previously reported a number of high bush blueberries showing stunt symptoms in three blueberry farms. Bushes were tested for phytoplasma based on the 16S rRNA gene. Nested PCR with universal phytoplasma primers resulted in amplification of phytoplasma DNA from blueberry bushes in samples from two of the farms surveyed. The 16S rDNA of the blueberry stunt phytoplasma from Quebec showed a 99% sequence identity with that of the blueberry stunt phytoplasma from Michigan (AY265220) from group 16SrI ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’ subgroup 16SrI-E. Phylogeny results confirmed the clustering of the blueberry stunt phytoplasma from Quebec within the same phylogenetic branch of phytoplasmas of group 16SrI, closely related to subgroup 16SrI-E. Preliminary virtual RFLP confirmed the sequence and phylogeny classification results. Further actual and virtual analyses are in progress to verify the presence of other possible phytoplasma strains from the Quebec blueberry farms. Top Keywords 16SrI phytoplasma, blueberry, RFLP, ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma’. Top |