Characterization of Bean common mosaic virus and Bean common mosaic necrosis virus isolates in common bean growing areas in Turkey

Bean common mosaic virus (BCMV) and Bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV) are well-known legume-infecting potyviruses. The incidences of BCMV and BCMNV infections were determined by ELISA in 367 seed and leaf samples which were collected in 15 common bean-growing provinces of Turkey. Of the samples tested, 67 (18.2 %) occurred to be infected with BCMV, however only 5 (1.4 %) were infected with BCMNV. A total of 45 ELISA-positive samples were selected from single-virus infected ones to determine BCMV and BCMNV pathogenicity groups (PGs) by using a set of bean cultivars that contain different combinations of resistance genes. Some BCMV populations exhibiting unusual pathogenicity were identified. One of them, named TR-180, was found to overcome resistance conferred by bc-1, bc-1 (2) , bc-2 and bc-2 (2) recessive alleles in common bean and assigned to PG VII. This isolate shared high (99 %) sequence identity with previously identified BCMV RU-1 and RU-1-related strains (RU1-OR-B and RU1-OR-C) according to a BLAST analysis of the nucleotide sequences of RT-PCR amplified products comprising the complete coat protein and 3' partial NIb regions. The isolates TR-203 and TR-256 produced a distinctive reaction pattern in the dominant I gene-bearing bean cultivars Amanda and Isabella at lower (< 30 A degrees C) temperatures and were classified into PG IVb. These isolates were found to be 99 % identical to US-1 strain based on 3' terminal nucleotide sequences of the BCMV genome. A fourth isolate, TR-243, involved mixed BCMV populations, as confirmed by partial nucleotide sequence analysis; one was classified as belonging to PG VII being similar to TR-180, and another was assigned to PG IVb. In conclusion, on the basis of both the reactions of differential bean cultivars and ELISA results, most of BCMV isolates were assigned to pathogroup PG VII and BCMNV isolates to PG VIb. This study is the first to show that four recessive resistance alleles of common bean can be overcome by a single field isolate of BCMV, and that a wide range of BCMV pathogroups are present in Turkey.