Solanaceous begomovirus

Begomovirus solanumnamakelyense is a viral pathogen classified within the Begomovirus genus of the Geminiviridae family. It poses a significant threat to various solanaceous crops, causing systemic infection that disrupts plant metabolism, nutrient transport, and overall development, ultimately leading to severe yield losses.

The virus is primarily transmitted by the whitefly complex, most notably Bemisia tabaci. The transmission mechanism is circulative and persistent, meaning that once a whitefly acquires the virus through feeding, it can remain infectious for the remainder of its life, effectively acting as a long-term vector for the disease in agricultural fields.

The host range is largely restricted to members of the Solanaceae family, including tomatoes, peppers, and various wild nightshades. These plants serve as essential reservoirs for the virus, especially in tropical and subtropical regions where climatic conditions support year-round populations of the whitefly vector.

Symptoms are typically characterized by severe leaf curling, yellowing (chlorosis), mosaic patterns, and stunted plant height. As the infection progresses, the internodes shorten, and the foliage may become brittle or crinkled, resulting in poor fruit set and significantly reduced marketability of the harvested produce.

• Deployment of physical barriers such as fine-mesh insect screens in greenhouses.
• Implementation of a strict integrated pest management (IPM) program for whiteflies.
• Use of certified pathogen-free seeds and seedlings for planting.
• Roguing of symptomatic plants to reduce the local inoculum source.
• Strategic rotation with non-host crops to break the disease cycle.

Managing this virus requires an integrated approach emphasizing sanitation and vector control. Because there are no curative treatments for viral plant diseases, preventing the entry of the vector into the crop and minimizing the internal spread of the virus remain the only effective methods to protect agricultural yields.