Survey of Citrus tristeza virus in Southern Italy

After a recent detection of Citrus tristeza virus (CTV) in Calabria (Southern Italy), an investigation was initiated in the spring 2006 to survey for the virus in this Region. The survey showed that CTV was not present in the nurseries which indicated that citrus mother plants and citrus plantlets ready for marketing have fulfilled completely the phytosanitary requirements. CTV was not detected in citrus-growing areas of Catanzaro, Cosenza and Crotone Provinces, but was found, at different levels in infected plants, in some orchards located in the Reggio Calabria and Vibo Valentia Provinces. Since the virus was detected not only in material illegally imported from abroad but also in local varieties, aphid transmission of the virus to local cultivars is suspected. Molecular characterization of some of the detected CTV isolates showed that at least three different CTV accessions have been introduced in this Region.