During September 2006, moderate vine decline symptoms including vine collapse and wilt and root rot were observed on numerous watermelon plants growing in a commercial field in Sullivan County, Indiana. No symptoms were observed on the fruit. Six plants displaying typical vine decline symptoms were collected and assayed for potyvirus infection and subsequently for Squash vein yellowing virus (SqVYV) and Papaya ringspot virus type W (PRSV-W). SqVYV is a whitefly-transmitted member of the Potyviridae, recently shown to cause watermelon vine decline in Florida (1,4). Plants infected with SqVYV in Florida are also frequently infected with PRSV-W, although SqVYV is sufficient for watermelon vine decline. The six field samples harbored one or more potyviruses as determined by ELISA (Agdia, Elkhart, IN). Mechanical inoculation of squash (Cucurbita pepo) and watermelon with sap from three of the field samples induced mosaic symptoms in both that are typical of potyviruses. Vein yellowing in squash and plant death in watermelon typical of SqVYV (1) later developed in plants inoculated with one field sample. A coat protein gene fragment was amplified by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR with SqVYV primers (1) from total RNA of five of the six field samples and also from the symptomatic, inoculated plants. Nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences of a 957-bp region of the RT-PCR product (primer sequences deleted prior to analysis) were 100% identical to SqVYV (GenBank accession No. DQ812125). PRSV-W also was identified in two of the five SqVYV-infected field samples by ELISA (Agdia) and by sequence analysis of a 3′ genome fragment amplified by RT-PCR with previously described degenerate potyvirus primers (3). No evidence for infection by other potyviruses was obtained. To our knowledge, this is the first report of SqVYV in Indiana and the first report of the virus anywhere outside of Florida. The whitefly (Bemisia tabaci, B strain) vector of SqVYV is relatively uncommon in Indiana and the cold winter temperatures make it unlikely that any SqVYV-infected watermelon vines or whiteflies will overseason, necessitating reintroductions of virus and vector each season. We feel that the moderate and restricted occurrence of SqVYV in Indiana observed in September 2006 should pose little or no threat to commercial watermelon production in Indiana and should not cause growers to alter their growing practices. The occurrence of SqVYV in Indiana does not appear to explain the similar symptoms of mature watermelon vine decline (MWVD) that has been observed in Indiana since the 1980s. In contrast with the insect vectored SqVYV, MWVD seems to be caused by a soilborne biological agent (2).
References: (1) S. Adkins et al. Phytopathology 97:145, 2007. (2) D. S. Egel et al. Online publication. doi:10.1094/PHP-2000-1227-01-HN. Plant Health Progress, 2000. (3) A. Gibbs and A. Mackenzie. J. Virol. Methods 63:9, 1997. (4) P. Roberts et al. Citrus Veg. Mag. December 12, 2004.
