VIEW ARTICLE

A New Cowpea Strain of Southern Bean Mosaic Virus from Ghana. P. N. L. Lamptey, Department of Plant Pathology, Macdonald College of McGill University, Montreal, Canada, Present address: Department of Crop Science, University of Ghana, Legon; R. I. Hamilton, Department of Plant Pathology, Macdonald College of McGill University, Montreal, Canada. Phytopathology 64:1100-1104. Accepted for publication 8 March 1974. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-64-1100.

A seed-transmissible virus isolated from seedlings of cowpea produced in Ghana was identified as a strain of southern bean mosaic virus (SBMV). The virus infects both cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) systemically, but no systemic symptoms are produced in bean. The virus is antigenically related, but not identical to, SBMV and severe bean mosaic virus (SvBMV) on the basis of immunodiffusion with homologous and heterologous sera. Electrophoretic mobilities of –3.3 × 10^–5 and –3.7 × 10^–5 cm² sec^–1 volt^–1 at pH 7.0 were calculated for the virus and SBMV by sucrose gradient electrophoresis. The possible derivation of SBMV and the cowpea strain of SBMV (SBMV-CS) from the Ghana strain of SBMV is discussed.