First Report of Tomato spotted wilt virus on Soybean in Iran.

During the summers of 1999 and 2000, 3,110 soybean (Glycine max) leaf samples were randomly collected from soybean fields in the Ardebil, Goletan, Khuzestan, Lorestan, and Mazandaran provinces of Iran. Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) was detected in leaf samples by TSWV-specific polyclonal antibody (As-0526 and As-0580, DSMZ, Braunschweig, Germany) in double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA). Mechanical inoculation of 26 plant species (10 plants per species) and cultivars with extracts of positive leaf samples produced necrotic local lesions in Beta vulgaris, Chenopodium quinoa, C. amaranticolor, Gomphrena globosa, Phaseolus vulgaris cv. Talash, Vicia faba, and Vigna unguiculata cv. Mashad; produced systemic chlorosis followed by necrosis in Datura stramonium, D. metel, Nicotiana rustica, N. tabacum cv. Samsun, N. glutinosa, N. bentamiana, and Glycine max cv. Hill; and produced chlorosis, stunting, and bud necrosis in Arachis hypogaea (peanut). Plants developing these symptoms following mechanical inoculation with extracts from original soybean leaves were positive in ELISA for TSWV. ELISA results indicate that the overall incidence of TSWV on soybean in the five provinces was 5.4%. TSWV has been reported in potato (2) and tomato (1) from Iran, but to our knowledge, this is the first report of the occurrence of TSWV on soybean in Iran. References: (1) K. Bananej et al. Iran. J. Plant Pathol. 34:30, 1998. (2) R. Pourrahim et al. Plant Dis. 85:442, 2001.