Worldwide diffusion of Fig latent virus 1 in fig accessions and its detection by serological and molecular tools

A virus with filamentous particles ca. 700 nm long, denoted Fig latent virus 1 (FLV-1) is widespread in Apulian (southern Italy) fig orchards, in trees showing or not mosaic symptoms and in symptomless seedlings. The virus was transmitted by sap inoculation to a very restricted range of herbaceous hosts without inducing apparent symptoms and was transmitted through fig seeds to a very high percentage (80 to 100 %). It was successfully purified from root tissues of infected figs. A virus-specific antiserum raised in rabbits, proved useful for its detection in fig leaf dips by immunosorbent electron microscopy (ISEM), Western Blot, dot immuno-binding (DIBA), ELISA. The viral genome structure resembles that of members of the genus Trichovirus in the family Flexiviridae. Keywords: fig latent virus, Trichovirus, serology, ISEM, Western blot, DIBA, ELIS

Short communication. First report of Eggplant mottled dwarf virus in China rose in southern Spain

Eggplant mottled dwarf virus (EMDV, genus Nucleorhabdovirus, family Rhabdoviridae) is transmitted in nature by leafhoppers and its natural host range includes vegetable crops (eggplant, tomato, potato, pepper), ornamentals (pittosporum, honeysuckle, pelargonium) and wild plants (caper, Solanum nigrum). The prevalence of infections is generally very low. EMDV has been demonstrated to be the causal agent of a vein yellowing disease of China rose (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis) in southern Italy. In this work, four locations from Málaga and Granada provinces (southern Spain) were surveyed in 2011 to study the prevalence of EMDV infections in China rose by serological and molecular methods. Overall, EMDV was detected in 77.3% of the samples (33 out of 45 samples tested). Mechanical transmission tests and immunoelectron microscopy confirmed the presence of EMDV. The possible causes of such a high and unexpected prevalence are discussed. The use of molecular hibridization with an EMDV specific riboprobe is proposed for early screening of vegetative propagated China rose plants to avoid dissemination of infected material

ICEBERG “How to estimate costs of poor quality in a Software QA project: a novel approach to support management decisions”

The ICEBERG project proposers intend to carry out a sound Transfer of Knowledge (ToK) in the Software Quality Assurance domain, with the following two main objectives: 1. Boosting the researchers of the future: Creating a long lasting research network involving both the commercial and non-commercial sectors to foster co-operation based on joint research projects; Promoting innovation and knowledge transfer through secondment of researchers; Providing diverse career possibilities & research experience for researchers, knowledge sharing/exchange. 2. Starting from the Iceberg analogy, investigating, defining and implementing models-based process able to: Identify activities resulting from poor quality, Define how to estimate costs associated with i) testing activities in relation with a given quality and ii) missing, incomplete or wrong implementation of testing activities/phases, Collect data iteratively, and use it to estimate costs; Analyse results and support on decision-making on the next steps at quality management level in Telco and Finance domain. To achieve these main objectives, proposers will i) plan a well defined ToK, as well as ii) identify all the elements influencing the product/process cost and quality and create a shared database, to take advantage of the companys historical data for parameterization of prediction models. The final results of the project will be to provide researchers with new research skills and broad horizons in Software Quality Assurance related to models-based process, oriented to support decision-making applicable in Telco and Finance. The models-based process and the proof of concept IT tool will be evaluated on real test cases provided by the industrial partners and extensively described in the ICEBERG handbook