Journal of Plant Pathology (2014), 96 (4, Supplement), S4.113-S4.131 S4.129 DISEASE NOTE DISEASE NOTE FIRST REPORT OF GRAPEVINE STRAIN 5 IN ITALY FIRST REPORT OF A DISEASE CAUSED BY FUSARIUM GLOBOSUM ON GIANT CANE IN IRAN D. Rizzo1, A. Luvisi2, L. Stefani1, M. Paoli1, G. Marchi3, A. Panattoni2 and A. Materazzi2 A.M. Heydari-Nezhad, V. Babaeizad, H.A. Mirhosseini and M. Khaksari LEAFROLL ASSOCIATED VIRUS-4 1Servizio Fitosanitario Regionale, servizi agroambientali di vigilanza e controllo, Regione Toscana, Via dei Fiori 8, 51010 Pescia (PT), Italy 2Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Via del Borghetto, 80, 56124 Pisa, Italy 3Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Science, University of Florence, Piazzale delle Cascine 28, 50114 Firenze, Italy Leafroll is one of the most harmful viral diseases affecting grapevine worldwide. Historically, a dozen of viruses, named grapevine leafroll-associated viruses (GLRaVs), belonging to genera Closterovirus and Ampelovirus (Family Closteroviridae), have been found associated with the disease. Recent studies showed that GLRaV-4, -5, -6, -Pr, Deand -Car are in fact strains of the same virus species (Abou Ghanem-Sabanadzovic et al., 2012) prompting taxonomic and nomenclatural revision of these viruses. Among these viruses, GLRaV-4 strain 5 has been reported from many viticultural areas in the world. In 2012-2013, surveys for virus detection disclosed the identification of GLRaV-4 strain 5 in 768 samples collected in Tuscany. The virus presence was ascertained by real-time (RT)-PCR as reported by Osman et al. (2007). GLRaV-4 strain 5 was found in 2 samples (0.63% rate, 2012) and in 4 samples (1.16%, 2013) in cvs Sangiovese and Canaiolo. Further molecular analysis revealed that one infected vine hosted a single GLRaV-5 infection, while other infected vines were infected with multiple viruses, including GLRaV-3, GVA, GFkV and GRSPaV. The GLRaV-4 strain 5 sequences obtained from the positive samples shared 96% nucleotide identities with the corresponding fragment of a reference GLRaV-5 isolate (GenBank accession No. JX559639.1). The nucleotide sequence was deposited in GenBank as accession No. KM252726. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report of the occurrence of GLRaV-4 strain 5 in Italian vineyards. Abou Ghanem-Sabanadzovic N., Sabanadzovic S., Gugerli P., Rowhani A., 2012. Genome organization, serology and phylogeny of Grapevine leafroll-associated viruses 4 and 6: taxonomic implications. Virus Research 163: 120-128. Osman F., Leutenegger C., Golino D., Rowhani A., 2007. Realtime RT-PCR (TaqMan®) assays for the detection of Grapevine leafroll associated viruses 1–5 and 9. Journal of Virological Methods 141: 22-29. Department of Plant Protection, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, P.O.BOX 578, Mazandaran, Sari, Iran Giant cane (Arundo donax) is a monocotyledonous plant belonging to the family Poaceae, whose stems are used in handicrafts and paper industry (Dudley, 2000). Blight of leaf sheaths and stem lesions with a light brown coloured center, surrounded by a darker brown line were observed on A. donax plants in different regions of the Mazandaran province (Iran). Fragments from symptomatic tissues were washed, surface-disinfected with 70% ethanol and a 1% sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) solution and plated on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Fungal cultures displayed a white floccose mycelium that turned often violet with age. A violet pigment that darkened with age was released in the medium. Microconidia were abundant, oval or globose shaped whereas a limited number of 3-5 septate macroconidia was produced. Micro- and macroconidia were ca. 5-10×1 and 15-30×2-3 μm in diameter, respectively. Based on morphological features, the disease agent was identified as Fusarium globosum (Leslie and Summerell, 2006), a result that was confirmed by amplifying by PCR the translation elongation factor (TEF) region (Jurado et al., 2010) and sequencing the obtained product (a 600 bp amplicon). This sequence was then compared with related sequences from GenBank. BLAST analysis of a 600 bp fragment showed 100% similarity with Fusarium globosum (accession No. KJ746615). Pathogenicity tests were conducted by placing mycelial plugs taken from the margins of 3-day-old colonies on the stem of healthy plants. The same symptoms appeared one week after inoculation. Fusarium globosum was previously reported on corn, wheat and barley in Iran (Darvishnia et al., 2005). This is the first report of Giant cane Fusarium sheath blight in Iran. Darvishnia M., Alizade A., Zare R., Mohammadi E., 2006. Three new Fusarium taxa isolated from gramineous plants in Iran. Rostaniha 7: 193-205 (in Persian) Dudley T.L., 2000. Arundo donax L. Invasive plants of California’s wildlands: 53-58. Jurado M., Marín P., Callejas C., Moretti A., Vázquez C., GonzálezJaén M.T., 2010. Genetic variability and Fumonisin production by Fusarium proliferatum. Food Microbiology 27: 50-57. Leslie J.F., Summerell B.A., 2006. The Fusarium laboratory manual, Blackwell publishing, Iowa, USA. Corresponding author: A. Materazzi Fax: +39 050 2210559 E-mail: alberto.materazzi@unipi.it Corresponding author: A.M. Heydari-Nezhad E-mail: amir.masoud_90@yahoo.com Received October 29, 2014 Accepted December 4, 2014 Received October 23, 2014 Accepted November 4, 2014