Biolistic transfection of plants by infectious cDNA clones of Plum pox virus

Plant biolistic transfection by two Plum pox virus (PPV) infectious cDNA clones (strains PPV-M and PPV-D) using the gene gun apparatus PDS 1000-He was optimized. Nicotiana benthamiana plants were germinated on Petri dishes with MS growth medium. At the age of four weeks the plants were subjected to biolistic transfection and three days later were transplanted into common soil substrate. The plant survival after transplantation was about 70 %, the transfection efficiency was over 80 % (compared to 6 – 10 % efficiency reached by mechanical plant inoculation). The plants showed typical PPV symptoms two weeks post transfection. The virus presence was confirmed by immunoblotting, RTPCR, as well as by successful transmission by sap to healthy plants. The co-transfection of N. benthamiana plants by PPV-M and PPV-D led to mixed infections with PPV-D strongly prevalent. We assumed the properties of cDNA constructs responsible for this behaviour.Keywords: gene gun, PPV strains, immunoblottin

Current Wildland Fire Patterns and Challenges in Europe : A Synthesis of National Perspectives

Changes in climate, land use, and land management impact the occurrence and severity of wildland fires in many parts of the world. This is particularly evident in Europe, where ongoing changes in land use have strongly modified fire patterns over the last decades. Although satellite data by the European Forest Fire Information System provide large-scale wildland fire statistics across European countries, there is still a crucial need to collect and summarize in-depth local analysis and understanding of the wildland fire condition and associated challenges across Europe. This article aims to provide a general overview of the current wildland fire patterns and challenges as perceived by national representatives, supplemented by national fire statistics (2009-2018) across Europe. For each of the 31 countries included, we present a perspective authored by scientists or practitioners from each respective country, representing a wide range of disciplines and cultural backgrounds. The authors were selected from members of the COST Action "Fire and the Earth System: Science & Society" funded by the European Commission with the aim to share knowledge and improve communication about wildland fire. Where relevant, a brief overview of key studies, particular wildland fire challenges a country is facing, and an overview of notable recent fire events are also presented. Key perceived challenges included (1) the lack of consistent and detailed records for wildland fire events, within and across countries, (2) an increase in wildland fires that pose a risk to properties and human life due to high population densities and sprawl into forested regions, and (3) the view that, irrespective of changes in management, climate change is likely to increase the frequency and impact of wildland fires in the coming decades. Addressing challenge (1) will not only be valuable in advancing national and pan-European wildland fire management strategies, but also in evaluating perceptions (2) and (3) against more robust quantitative evidence.Peer reviewe

Current Wildland Fire Patterns and Challenges in Europe: A Synthesis of National Perspectives

Changes in climate, land use, and land management impact the occurrence and severity of wildland fires in many parts of the world. This is particularly evident in Europe, where ongoing changes in land use have strongly modified fire patterns over the last decades. Although satellite data by the European Forest Fire Information System provide large-scale wildland fire statistics across European countries, there is still a crucial need to collect and summarize in-depth local analysis and understanding of the wildland fire condition and associated challenges across Europe. This article aims to provide a general overview of the current wildland fire patterns and challenges as perceived by national representatives, supplemented by national fire statistics (2009–2018) across Europe. For each of the 31 countries included, we present a perspective authored by scientists or practitioners from each respective country, representing a wide range of disciplines and cultural backgrounds. The authors were selected from members of the COST Action “Fire and the Earth System: Science & Society” funded by the European Commission with the aim to share knowledge and improve communication about wildland fire. Where relevant, a brief overview of key studies, particular wildland fire challenges a country is facing, and an overview of notable recent fire events are also presented. Key perceived challenges included (1) the lack of consistent and detailed records for wildland fire events, within and across countries, (2) an increase in wildland fires that pose a risk to properties and human life due to high population densities and sprawl into forested regions, and (3) the view that, irrespective of changes in management, climate change is likely to increase the frequency and impact of wildland fires in the coming decades. Addressing challenge (1) will not only be valuable in advancing national and pan-European wildland fire management strategies, but also in evaluating perceptions (2) and (3) against more robust quantitative evidence

Sour cherry isolate of Plum pox virus (PPV-SoC): monitoring of viral distribution in infected Prunus rootstocks

International audienceSix Prunus genotypes used as rootstocks, and including two interspecific hybrids, were chip-inoculated with the sour cherry isolate of Plum pox virus (PPV-SoC). The ability of the virus to infect different Prunus species was studied. The symptoms were noted and their location within the tree structure was determined by AMAPmod methodology. After a 3-year experimental period, 5 of the 6 Prunus genotypes tested (‘GF8.1’, ‘Jaspi’, ‘F12.1’, ‘Edabriz’ and ‘SL64’) were infected in vivo and showed different patterns of contamination. Generally, symptomatic leaves in all the infected genotypes were not consecutive on the shoots, thus resulting in a large symptomatic zone. The virus was characterised by irregular distribution in all the infected Prunus plants. The Colt genotype could not be infected in vivo, but PPV-SoC could be transmitted by in vitro grafting. We conclude that PPV-SoC may systematically infect different cherry and plum rootstocks. Therefore, the host range of PPV-SoC appears to be wider than that of conventional PPV isolate

Susceptibility of peach GF 305 seedlings and selected herbaceous plants to Plum pox virus isolates from western Slovakia. Acta Virol. vol. 41, p. 341-344. PMid: 9607094

Summary. The susceptibility of peach GF 305 seedlings and herbaceous plants to five plum pox virus (PPV) isolates from orchards of western Slovakia was investigated. PPV was isolated from diseased plum, apricot and peach trees, and transmitted by chip-budding to peach GF 305. The herbaceous plants were infected by mechanical inoculation. The transmission was analysed by symptomatology and double sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA). Infected peaches developed leaf distortion, tissue clearing along the veins and small chlorotic spots (isolate BOR-3). With exception of BOR-3, the PPV isolates transmitted from peach caused local chlorotic spots on Chenopodium foetidum. The character of symptoms changed when a sap from PPV-infected Nicotiana benthamiana was used as virus inoculum. From N. benthamiana, the PPV isolates could be transmitted to Pisum sativum, cv. Colmo (light green mosaic), N. clevelandii and N. clevelandii x N. glutinosa hybrid (latent infection or chlorotic spots)

Mediterranean and central-eastern European countries host viruses of two different clades of plum pox virus strain M

UMR BGPI Equipe 6; Publication Inra prise en compte dans l'analyse bibliométrique des publications scientifiques mondiales sur les Fruits, les Légumes et la Pomme de terre. Période 2000-2012. http://prodinra.inra.fr/record/256699International audienceThe genetic diversity of plum pox virus strain M (PPV-M) was assessed by analyzing 28 isolates collected in 8 European countries. Two genomic fragments spanning the (Cter)P3-6K1-(Nter)CI coding region as well as the full coat protein coding region were sequenced directly from PCR products. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the geographical origin of the collected isolates was clearly associated with two different PPV-M clades. Moreover, the pattern of substitutions in the CP gene shed light on the evolutionary relationships between PPV-M and the recombinant strains PPV-Rec and PPV-T