Disease Note

First Report of Zucchini Yellow Mosaic Virus in Ohio. S. T. Nameth, Department of Plant Pathology, Ohio State University, Columbus 43210.  Plant Disease 70:801, 1986.  Accepted for publication 24 March 1986.  Copyright 1986 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-70-801c.

Zucchini yellow mosaic virus (ZYMV), a virus that has caused severe economic damage to cucurbits in California, New York, and Florida (1,2), has recently been identified in Ohio.  The virus was isolated from mature pumpkin fruit (Cucurbita pepo (L.) var. pepo) collected from southeast Ohio during the fall of 1985.  Tissue of infected fruit was the inoculum source used to infect greenhouse-grown pumpkin seedlings.  Sap extracts from infected C. pepo seedlings were rub-inoculated onto selected indicator hosts.  The Ohio isolate of ZYMV incited a chlorotic local lesion response on Chenopodium amaranticolor Coste & Reyn., a mild systemic mosaic on Luffa acutangula Roxb., and a severe systemic mosaic on C. pepo (L.) var. melopepo Alef. 'Early Prolific Straightneck.'  Sap extracts from Early Prolific squash plants infected with ZYMV gave a positive reaction to antiserum developed against the cytoplasmic inclusions associated with the New York isolate of ZYMV (2), thus confirming the presence of this virus in Ohio.  This is the first observation of this potentially destructive pathogen in the midwestern United States.  Further monitoring of the incidence of ZYMV in the cucurbit-producing areas of Ohio and other parts of the Midwest will continue.

References: (1) S. T. Nameth et al. Plant Dis. 69:785, 1985.  (2) R. Provvidenti et al. Plant Dis. 68:443, 1984.