Occurrence of papaya ringspot potyvirus and cucurbit viruses in Nepal

Summary A survey of papaya and 10 cucurbitaceous vegetables (ashgourd, zucchini, watermelon, cucumber, pumpkin, bottlegourd, snakegourd, spongegourd, bittergourd and choyote) during 1989 and from 1992 to 1994 in more than 68 locations (both experimental plots and farmers' fields) covering 18 terai and inner‐terai districts of Nepal, indicated that these crops were heavily affected with various virus‐like symptoms. The most commonly observed symptoms were severe mosaic, leaf distortion, oily streaks or spots on papaya; leaf distortion, blisters and shoe stringing on zucchini; and mosaic or yellow mosaic, blisters, and leaf distortion on other cucurbits. Average incidence of plants with symptoms ranged from 75% to 100% on papaya; 85% to 100% on zucchini; 4% to 100% on cucumber; 4% to 100% on pumpkin and 10–100% on bottlegourd, choyote and watermelon. The virus isolated from papaya and zucchini was confirmed as papaya ringspot potyvirus — watermelon strain (PRSV‐W). It was also detected in survey samples from ashgourd, bittergourd, snakegourd, spongegourd, zucchini, watermelon, bottlegourd and cucumber. Leaf extracts of some cucumber, choyote, pumpkin, zucchini and snakegourd samples reacted with cucumber mosaic cucumovirus (CMV) and zucchini yellow mosaic potyvirus (ZYMV) antisera. Leaf extracts of ashgourd, cucumber and pumpkin reacted with antibodies against cucurbit aphid‐borne yellow luteovirus (CABW). No samples reacted with antiserum to watermelon mosaic‐2 potyvirus (WMV‐2) or squash mosaic potyvirus (SqMV). Some papaya and most cucurbits leaf samples cross‐reacted with antibodies against Moroccan (Mor) and Algerian (Alg) isolates of WMV. The Nepalese PRSV isolate was related to but distinct from a PRSV‐W type strain from France. This is the first report on the identity of ZYMV and CABW in Nepal.