Research Short Article Vol. 36, No. 1, Spring 2022, p. 1-8 Occurrence of Major Viruses in Wheat in Khuzestan Province M. Hassani 1 , M. Lotfipour 2* , M. Ghaseminejad 3 , M.H. Tabib 4 , M. Baimani 5 Received: 09-11-2021 Revised: 18-11-2021 Accepted: 14-12-2021 Available Online: 20-06-2022 How to cite this article: Hassani, M., Lotfipour, M., Ghaseminejad, M., Tabib, M.H., & Baimani, M. (2022). Occurrence of Major Viruses in Wheat in Khuzestan Province. Journal of Iranian Plant Protection Research 36(1): 1-8. (In Persian with English abstract) DOI: 10.22067/JPP.2021.73451.1056 Introduction Dwarfing, yellowing and yellow mosaic are the most common symptoms observed in cereal fields. Various pathogens such as viruses are involved in development of these symptoms. Over 30 different plant viruses are known to infect wheat. Among them, Wheat dwarf virus (WDV), Barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) and Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV) are important viral diseases around the world. Little comprehensive information on the distribution of these viruses is available in Khuzestan Province, Iran. This study aimed to determine the occurrence of WDV, BYDV-MAV and WSMV in the major wheat-producing regions in Khuzestan province. Material and Methods A survey of wheat fields showing yellowing, dwarfing and mosaic symptoms was conducted during 2020-21 crop season. The six counties in Khuzestan province were covered in the survey include Elhai, Mollasani, Shadegan, Ramhormoz, Shush, and Andimeshk. Plant leaves exhibiting viral disease symptoms were placed separately in plastic bags and quickly transported to the laboratory. Five hundred seventy (570) wheat samples were collected. These samples were tested by Enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA) using specific antibodies of WSMV (from Shiraz Virology Research Center), BYDV-MAV (Bioreba, Switzerland) and WDV (DSMZ, Germany). Results and Discussion The results showed that three tested viruses were present in Khuzestan province. Among the tested viruses, WDV was the most commonly detected (30% of the 570 wheat samples), followed by BYDV-MAV (29%) and WSMV (5%). WDV was found in all counties except Ramhormoz (Table 1). In Elhai county, 28 of the 53 tested samples were infected with WDV, which was the highest infection ratio (52.8%). Symptoms caused by BYDV- MAV are severe dwarfism and yellowing (Figure 1), and it is impossible to distinguish between WDV and BYDV-MAV viruses. The virus was the most widespread and was found in all counties (Table 1). The infection ratio in the six counties were 35% in Elhai, 27% in Mollasani, 10% in Ramhormoz, 25% in Shush, 11% in Andimeshk and 28% in Shadegan. In Ramhormoz, BYDV-MAV existed only in 8 out of 78 tested samples. Selected plants may be shortened due to lack of physiological factors or maybe infected by other strains of the virus. It is recommended that the occurrence of other virus species, including the dominant BYDV-PAV species, be investigated. The mixed infection with WDV+BYDV-MAV was detected in 9% of tested plants. However, the severity of the plant infection was similar to that of plants infected with any of the viruses. WDV was introduced as the predominant virus in wheat fields infected with yellowing and dwarfism in Khuzestan in 2020- 2021. Of course, this does not mean that most of the symptoms dwarfing and yellowing in wheat are related to this virus. Studies in Germany also show that grain infection ratio with WDV and BYDV has been different between different years, so that in 1998-1998 WDV was predominant, while in 2005-2001 BYDV was 1- M.Sc. in Plant Disease, University of Ilam, Ilam, Iran 2- Ph.D. in Plant Virology, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran (٭- Corresponding Author Email: maedeh_lotfipour@yahoo.com) 3- M.Sc. in Agronomy, University of Chamran, Ahvaz, Iran 4- Ph.D. Student in Weed Management, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran 5- M.Sc. in Plant Disease, University of Chamran, Ahvaz, Iran Journal of Iranian Plant Protection Research https://jpp.um.ac.ir