Muhammad Shafiq Shahid

• PhD
• Associate Professor at Sultan Qaboos University

Plant viruses participate as biotrophic parasites in complex interactions with their hosts, resulting in the regulation of a diverse range of chloroplast/mitochondria-related genes that are essential for mediating immune responses. In this study, integrative systems biology approaches were applied to identify chloroplast/mitochondrial genes during...

Metal contamination (MC) is a growing environmental issue, with metals altering biotic and metabolic pathways and entering the human body through contaminated food, water and inhalation. With continued population growth and industrialisation, MC poses an exacerbating risk to human health and ecosystems. Metal contamination in the environment is exp...

Chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a vital spice and cash crop in India, contributing significantly to the agricultural economy and food industry. This study aimed to identify the causal agents of yellow leaf curl and little leaf disease symptoms observed in chilli pepper in Uttar Pradesh, India. Genomic DNA was extracted from 25 symptomatic sam...

The Citrus clementina (citrus) plant produces various phytohormones due to the significant involvement of the carotenoid cleavage oxygenase (CCO) gene family in its growth and development. CCO genes can be divided into two main categories: NCED (9-cis-epoxy carotenoid dioxygenase), responsible for abscisic acid (ABA) production, and CCD (carotenoid...

Phytoplasma, a potentially hazardous pathogen associated with witches’ broom, is an economically harmful disease-producing bacteria that damages chilli cultivation. Phytoplasma-infected plants display various symptoms that indicate significant disruptions in normal plant physiology and behaviour. Diseases caused by phytoplasma are widespread and ha...

Introduction Pantoea ananatis has emerged as a significant plant pathogen affecting various crops worldwide, causing substantial economic losses. Bacteriophages and their endolysins offer promising alternatives for controlling bacterial infections, addressing the growing concerns of antibiotic resistance. Methods This study isolated and characteri...

Erwinia amylovora, the causative agent of fire blight, causes significant economic losses for farmers worldwide by inflicting severe damage to the production and quality of plants in the Rosaceae family. Historically, fire blight control has primarily relied on the application of copper compounds and antibiotics, such as streptomycin. However, the...

Background Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) production is severely threatened by bacterial wilt, caused by the phytopathogenic bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum. Recently, nano-enabled strategies have shown tremendous potential in crop disease management. Objectives This study investigates the efficacy of biogenic nanoformulations (BNFs), comprisin...

Ensuring global food security amid mounting challenges, such as population growth, disease infestations, resource limitations, and climate change, is a pressing concern. Anticipated increases in food demand add further complexity to this critical issue. Plant pathogens, responsible for substantial crop losses (up to 41%) in major crops like wheat,...

Cyclo (Phe-Pro) (cFP), a cyclic dipeptide with notable antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties, shows great promise for biological control of plant diseases. Produced as a byproduct by non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS), the regulatory mechanism of cFP biosynthesis remains unclear. In a screening test of 997 Tn5 mutants of Burkhol...

The begomoviruses are the most economically damaging pathogens that pose a serious risk to India’s chilli crop and have been associated with the chilli leaf curl disease (ChiLCD). Chilli cultivars infected with begomovirus have suffered significant decreases in biomass output, negatively impacting their economic characteristics. We used the C-mii t...

Agriculture plays a fundamental role in ensuring global food security, yet plant diseases remain a significant threat to crop production. Traditional methods to manage plant diseases have been extensively used, but they face significant drawbacks, such as environmental pollution, health risks and pathogen resistance. Similarly, biopesticides are ec...

Soil is the backbone of the agricultural economy of any country. Soil salinity refers to the higher concentration of soluble salts in the soil. Soil salinity is a ruinous abiotic stress that has emerged as a threatening issue for food security. High salt concentration causes an ionic imbalance that hampers water uptake, affecting photosynthesis and...

Papaya leaf curl disease (PaLCuD) is widespread and classified in the genus begomovirus ( Geminiviridae ), disseminated by the vector whitefly Bemisia tabaci . RNA interference (RNAi)-based antiviral innate immunity stands as a pivotal defense mechanism and biological process in limiting viral genomes to manage plant diseases. The current study aim...

The full‐genome sequences of a bipartite begomovirus were identified in a mungbean ( Vigna radiata ) crop displaying symptoms such as yellow mosaics and stunting in the Al‐Batinah North region (23.6867° N 57.9058° E), Oman. Initial detection and confirmation of the virus genome were carried out through polymerase chain reaction, followed by obtaini...

This review delves into the mesmerizing technology of nano-agrochemicals, specifically pesticides and herbicides, and their potential to aid in the achievement of UN SDG 17, which aims to reduce hunger and poverty globally. The global market for conventional pesticides and herbicides is expected to reach USD 82.9 billion by 2027, growing 2.7% annua...

Soil salinity is one of the major limiting factors in plant growth regulation. Salinity-tolerant endophytic bacteria (STEB) can be used to alleviate the negative effects of salinity and promote plant growth. In this study, thirteen endophytic bacteria were isolated from mungbean roots and tested for NaCl salt-tolerance up to 4%. Six bacterial isola...

Agricultural crops are subject to a variety of biotic and abiotic stresses that adversely affect growth and reduce the yield of crop plantss. Traditional crop stress management approaches are not capable of fulfilling the food demand of the human population which is projected to reach 10 billion by 2050. Nanobiotechnology is the application of nano...

Targeted genome editing technologies are becoming the most important and widely used genetic tools in studies of phytopathology. The “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)” and its accompanying proteins (Cas) have been first identified as a natural system associated with the adaptive immunity of prokaryotes that have be...

Background: Cassia absus L. and Citrus medica L. plants are sources of different phytochemicals with pharmaceutical significance. They are biochemically distinctive and used in producing various herbal products with exclusive bioactivity. Also, the extraction of these phytonutrients with medicinal characteristics has recently increased. Objectives...

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) is a global spreading begomovirus that is exerting a major restraint on global tomato production. In this transgenic approach, an RNA interference (RNAi)-based construct consisting of sequences of an artificial microRNA (amiRNA), a group of small RNA molecules necessary for plant cell development, signal transd...

Simple Summary Whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci) ‘B mitotype’ represent an insect pest of fruit, vegetable, ornamental and weed plants. B. tabaci is a cryptic species comprising at least eight endemic haplotypes, of which haplotypes 6 and/or 8 are recognized invasives. The objective of this study was to identify the prevalence and relationships among put...

Papaya leaf curl disease (PaLCD) was primarily detected in India and causes major economic damage to agriculture crops grown globally, seriously threatening food security. Begomoviruses are communicated by the vector Bemisia tabaci, and their transmission efficiency and persistence in the vector are the highest, exhibiting the widest host range due...

Molecular computing was used to investigate the possible causal agents of chilli crop samples showing mixed symptoms of yellow leaf curl and little leaf type diseases in the Uttar Pradesh province, India. Total genomic DNA was extracted from twenty-five samples and amplified by PCR using a universal primer pair for begomovirus and phytoplasma. Mixe...

Weeds plants serve as a reservoir of begomoviruses Begomovirus and play a vital role in the diversity of single stranded DNA viruses. Wild melon (Cucumis melo) plants showing leaf curling and color breaking symptoms were collected and used in for Begomovirus amplification. Cloning, sequencing and bioinformatics analysis revealed the association of...

A quest for life on Mars (LoMars) started in the early 1960s when the most prestigious scientific journals published several research articles. According to Elsevier’s Scopus database, the rise in annual literature production started in the late 1990s, most likely associated with the launch of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NA...

Rice bacterial leaf blight caused by Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) is responsible for a significant reduction in rice production. Due to the small impact on the environment, biogenic nanomaterials are regarded as a new type of antibacterial agent. In this research, three colloids of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized with different...

Increasing chromium (Cr) contamination in agricultural soils is a threat to crop yields and quality. Recently, nano-enabled strategies have been emerging with a great potential towards improving crop production and reclaiming the heavy metal contaminated soils. This study aimed to elucidate the potential of silicon oxide nanoparticles (SiONPs) on o...

Bacteria from the genus Pantoea have been reported to be widely distributed in rice paddy environments with contradictory roles. Some strains promoted rice growth and protected rice from pathogen infection or abiotic stress, but other strain exhibited virulence to rice, even causing severe rice disease. In order to effectively utilize Pantoea in ri...

Plants grow together with microbes that have both negative and positive impacts on the host, while prokaryotes are in turn also hosts for viruses, co-evolving together in a complex interrelationship. Most research focuses on the interaction of either bacterial pathogens interacting with the plant host, or the impact on viruses on their pathogenic b...

Abiotic stresses, such as heavy metals (HMs), drought, salinity and water logging, are the foremost limiting factors that adversely affect the plant growth and crop productivity worldwide. The plants respond to such stresses by activating a series of intricate mechanisms that subsequently alter the morpho-physiological and biochemical processes. Ov...

Abiotic stresses, such as heavy metals (HMs), drought, salinity and water logging, are the foremost limiting factors that adversely affect the plant growth and crop productivity worldwide. The plants respond to such stresses by activating a series of intricate mechanisms that subsequently alter the morpho-physiological and biochemical processes. Ov...

The genus Begomovirus represents a group of multipartite viruses that significantly damage many agricultural crops, including papaya, and influence overall production. Papaya leaf curl disease (PaLCD) caused by the complex begomovirus species has several important implications and substantial losses in papaya production in many developing countries...

Chilli (capsicum annum L.) is an important edible spice crop grown in tropical areas of world due to its richness of nutrients like carotinoides, fibers, mineral components, oils, proteins and vitamins. A number of biotic and abiotic factors are challenging devastatingly the successful production of chilli. Among all of these factors, Fusarium wilt...

Fusarium wilt is one of potential threat to the successful production of chill. Present study was conducted to observe alterations in the biochemical profiling of chilli leaves after attack of fusarium wilt. For this purpose seedlings of three resistant (Fengaio, Glaxy-2 and BPVLC14-1) and three susceptible varieties (Amber F1, Tejal and BSS-410) w...

Begomoviruses are single-stranded (ss) and circular DNA viruses that are the main threat to world food security. Since they were first identified as a distinct group of viruses, at least one begomovirus (tomato yellow leaf curl virus), has become a global problem. During last two decades, the movement of agricultural produce globally and introducti...

Current Study was designed at the research area of Plant Pathology Research Institute, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad, Pakistan during the 2017– 2020. Fresh leaves of inoculated and un-inoculated potato varieties highly susceptible (FD 76-36), moderately susceptible (FD 73-110), and resistant (Esmee) / test lines were collected du...

Begomoviruses (family Geminiviridae) consist of single-stranded (ss) and circular genome particles which are transmitted by a complex of whitefly (Bemisia tabaci—Gennadius) biotype vectors and are also infecting fruits and ornamental plants all over the world. There have been few reports about the association of DNA satellite (alphasatellite and be...

Soil contamination with toxic heavy metals (HMs) poses a serious threat to global food safety, soil ecosystem and human health. The rapid industrialization, urbanization and extensive application of agrochemicals on arable land have led to paddy soil pollution worldwide. Rice plants easily accumulate toxic HMs from contaminated agricultural soils,...

Tomato- infecting single stranded begomoviruses (family Geminiviridae) causing Tomato yellow leaf curl diseases (TYLCD) are major limiting factors of tomato crop production in Oman. Two replicated experiments were performed with nine tomato genotypes that contained different combinations of genes conferring TYLCD resistance (Ty genes) to determine...

The complete nucleotide sequences of a monopartite begomovirus and an associated alphasatellite and betasatellite isolated from naturally infected okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) plants originating from Jordan were determined. The sequences of the begomovirus, alphasatellite, and betasatellites were determined to be 2,764, 1,307, and 1,354 nucleotide...

Citrus aurantifolia (acid lime) trees exhibiting yellowing, stem pitting and decline symptoms in Oman were found to be infected by Citrus tristeza virus (CTV) (genus; Closterovirus, family; Closteroviridae). The sequence of the 3′ approximately 9.8 Kb genome, encompassing the partial RNA dependent RNA polymerase to P23 genes including the 3′ UTR re...

Senna italica Mill. plants exhibiting yellowing and stunting symptoms typical of begomovirus infection were collected in Oman. Molecular characterization using begomovirus and betasatellite primers in polymerase chain reaction followed by rolling circle amplification, cloning and analysis of sequences revealed the S. italica plants were infected by...

Begomoviruses (family; Geminiviradae) consist of single-stranded (ss) and circular genome particles. They are transmitted by whiteflies, and represent a major constraint to agricultural crops in different parts of the world. In Oman, they have been causing huge losses to crop (tomato, cucumber, watermelon and beans). Research on begomoviruses in Om...

The negative effects of salinity on plant growth and physiology are well-established, which is one of the major threats to food security in semi-arid and arid regions of the world. The current research focuses on biosynthesis of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) from a bacterial strain NST2, which was genetically identified as Klebsiella pneu-moniae bas...

A quest for life on Mars (LoMars) started in the early 1960s when several research articles were published by the most prestigious scientific journals. The rise in annual literature production started in the late 1990s, most likely associated with the launch of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) first Sojourner Rover in 1996...

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus; family Cucurbitaceae) plants exhibiting begomovirus-like symptoms such as yellowing, mosaics and stunting were studied using cloning, sequencing, Species Demarcation Tool followed by phylogenetic clustering. The complete genome of DNA-A showed maximum sequence identity of 98.7% with the corresponding DNA-A of an isolate f...

Begomoviruses (genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae) are plant viruses that infect many economically important crops. Although they are poorly understood, wild plants infected by begomoviruses may have an important role as reservoirs in the epidemiology of viral diseases. Malva sylvestris is a common weed found in felds and waste grounds in Iran...

Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) and Turnip crinkle virus (TCV) are important plant infecting viruses. In the present study, whole transcriptome alteration of Arabidopsis thaliana in response to CMV, TuMV and TCV, individual as well as mixed infections of CMV and TuMV/CMV and TCV were investigated using microarray data. In re...

Two field-collected tomato plants, with severe and mild tomato leaf curl disease symptoms, were shown to be infected with tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus. The plant with severe symptoms was shown to additionally contain tobacco leaf curl betasatellite (TobLCuB). Inoculation of Nicotiana benthamiana plants with the cloned components showed the seve...

Papaya leaves exhibiting severe leaf curling and stunting symptoms were tested for the presence of begomovirus infection. The putative full-length cotton leaf curl Gezira virus (CLCuGV) and tomato leaf curl betasatellite (ToLCB) molecules were amplified, sequenced and analyzed. This is the first study providing the identification of CLCuGeV and ToL...

In recent years, next-generation sequencing (NGS) and contemporary Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-CRISPR-associated (Cas) technologies have revolutionized the life sciences and the field of plant virology. Both these technologies offer an unparalleled platform for sequencing and deciphering viral metagenomes prom...

Pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) plants showing begomovirus-like yellowing, curling and stunting symptoms were observed in the Barka Governate, Oman in December 2016. Cloning and sequencing of rolling circle amplified circular DNA molecules showed the plants to be infected with watermelon chlorotic stunt virus (WmCSV); a bipartite Old World begomovirus t...

Magnesium oxide nanoparticles (MgONPs) have emerged as effective antibacterial agents with unique physiochemical properties. Here, we report antibacterial activity of MgONPs produced by using Acinetobacter johnsonii strain RTN1 against rice pathogen Acidovorax oryzae for the first time. The physico-chemical and optical properties of biogenic MgONPs...

During a survey in February 2016, leaf curl disease symptoms were witnessed in Cucurbita maxima plants in Al-Batina commercial farm in Oman. Symptoms exhibited were characteristic of begomovirus infection as leaf curling, yellowing, and color breaking followed by mosaic pattern. The transmission electron microscopy confirmed the presence of typical...

The whitefly transmitted begomovirus Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) spread from the Middle East to become a near global problem for tomato production in the 1990s. This spread is believed to have occurred due to the global trade in live tomato planting material. Recently the important strains of TYLCV, “Israel” and “Mild”, in the Middle East...

The phytochemical and agronomical features of 15 tomato inbred lines were studied for two successive years under local environmental conditions of Oman. The objectives of this experiment were to; (1) determine the correlation between the variables to explain variation among tomato inbred lines, (2) estimate the relationship and divergence among tom...

Over the past two decades next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies have revolutionized the world of biological sciences. With every passing day, the decline in the cost of sequencing and the availability of free online software and tools for data analysis has made it possible to quickly sequence and analyze the massive amount of genomic data b...

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)–CRISPR-associated protein (Cas)–mediated genome editing, derived from prokaryotic adaptive immunity, is rapidly emerging as a potential tool for targeted alterations in eukaryotic genomes. Eclectic application of CRISPR includes insertion/deletion of a part of DNA, loss-of-function...

Soils contaminated with salts, metal ions, and industrial pollutants pose drastic effects on plant growth. Different physical, chemical, and biological methods are being used for improving the health of such soils to make the agricultural practices more profitable. Recently, microbe-mediated reclamation of polluted soils is attracting the researche...

Next generation sequencing (NGS) of DNAs amplified by rolling circle amplification from 6 tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants with leaf curl symptoms identified a number of monopartite begomoviruses, including Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV), and a betasatellite (Tomato leaf curl betasatellite [ToLCB]). Both TYLCV and ToLCB have previously b...

Background: In Oman tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum; family Solanaceae) is a minor crop, which is produced only for local consumption. In 2015, tobacco plants exhibiting severe downward leaf curling, leaf thickening, vein swelling, yellowing and stunting were identified in fields of tobacco in Suhar Al-Batina region, Oman. These symptoms are suggestive...

In 2016, Urtica incisa plants in a mixed crop field in the Salalah region of Oman showed typical symptoms of begomovirus infection. Twinned icosahedral particles (18–20 nm) were observed in symptomatic plant samples by electron microscopy. Total nucleic acid was extracted from leaves with the CTAB method (Porebski et al. 1997) and used in PCR with...

Lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus) plants exhibiting yellow mosaic and stunted growth symptoms, typical of begomovirus infection, were collected in Rampur city Nepal. Symptomatic plants were shown to be infected by a monopartite begomovirus in association with a betasatellite. The two begomovirus isolates associated with the disease showed 98.7% nucleot...

Alphasatellites, formerly known as DNA 1, are a satellite-like components associated with begomoviruses (the family Geminiviridae) that require betasatellite for symptom induction but depend on DNA-A for systemic movement. We have converted alphasatellite into gene-silencing vector (modified alphasatellite (∆DNA 1)) by deleting its A-rich region th...

Blackberries exhibiting yellow vein disease symptoms were found to be infected by a new virus, a putative member of the genus Vitivirus. Recombination assessment of several vitiviruses revealed multiple events involving the newly identified virus isolate. Occurrence in areas of high disease pressure was investigated and the population structure was...

Huanglongbing (HLB) is one of the most destructive diseases of Citrus. This study was conducted to characterize its etiological agent, ‘Candidatus Liberibacter’ spp., as well as the occurrence and distribution of HLB associated with acid lime (Citrus aurantifolia Swingle) in Oman. A survey of different geographical areas in Oman has shown that HLB...

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV), a whitefly (Bemisia tabaci)-transmitted virus (genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae), is a serious constraint to tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) production globally and was first reported to infect tomato in 2008 in Oman (Khan et al. 2008). Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an important vegetable crop in th...

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants exhibiting yellowing, curling and stunting symptoms were identified in fields of the Tawoos Agricultural Systems, in Al-Batinah in Oman. Cloning and sequencing of restriction endonuclease digested rolling circle amplified viral DNA identified a cotton begomovirus (family Geminiviridae) associated with the sympto...

Pea (Pisum sativum) plants exhibiting leaf distortion, yellowing, stunted growth and reduction in leaf size from Rampur, Nepal were shown to be infected by a begomovirus in association with betasatellites and alphasatellites. The begomovirus associated with the disease showed only low levels of nucleotide sequence identity (<91%) to previously char...

Kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) plants exhibiting foliar yellow mosaic symptoms and some leaf crumpling were identified in the Al Batinah region of Oman. Rolling circle amplification and polymerase chain reaction identified a bipartite begomovirus (family Geminiviridae) and a betasatellite in association with the symptomatic plants. Analysis of fu...

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus; family Cucurbitaceae) is an important food crop in Oman. In November 2015, C. lanatus plants exhibiting leaf curl as well yellowing and crumpling of leaves were observed at the Agricultural Experimental Station at Sultan Qaboos University Oman. Disease incidence in the fields was in the range of 70 to 80%. Due to the...

Blackberry viruses are pervasive, decreasing growth, yield and plant longevity. In a quest to identify viruses associated with blackberry yellow vein, a disease caused by virus complexes, a new double-stranded DNA virus, referred to as blackberry virus F (BVF), a putative member of the genus Badnavirus, family Caulimoviridae, was identified. The vi...

Blackberry yellow vein disease (BYVD) has had a major effect in production where endemic. In the last decade, several new RNA viruses associated with the disease, have been identified. This communication reports a DNA virus infecting a significant number of BYVD-affected plants. Experiments were conducted to characterize the virus, identify its geo...

A circular single stranded satellite, called as alphasatellite (initially identified as DNA-1), was characterised and confirmed to be associated with the Geminivirus begomovirus-betasatellite complexes. Alphasatellites are single stranded DNA (ssDNA) components, frequently accompanying with monopartite begomovirus or some time w ith bipartite begom...

Tomato (S. lycopersicum) is an economically important vegetable food crop and threatened by TYLCV, a devastating pathogen throughout the world. In the present study, we analyzed differential gene expression in response to TYLCV-IL and TYLCV-Mld (Begomovirus, Geminiviridae) viral strains infection in the Ty-1 tomato hybrids (Esns1) and non-hybrid to...

The complete genome sequences of a begomovirus and associated betasatellite was obtained by the rolling circle amplification from rose (Rosa indica) exhibiting dwarfing, leaf distortion and leaf curling symptoms from Rajasthan, India. The sequence of the begomovirus was determined to be 2,741 bp and showed the typical genome arrangement of an monop...

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV; family Geminiviridae, genus Begomovirus) is a devastating pathogen vectored by the whitefly Bemisia tabaci causing significant yield losses to tomato crops in Japan since 1998 (2). So far, there has been no report of this virus infecting common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris; family Fabaceae) in Japan. But recently,...

Samples were collected in 2011 from tomato plants exhibiting typical tomato leaf curl disease symptoms in the vicinity of Komae, Japan. PCR mediated amplification, cloning and sequencing of all begomovirus components from two plants from different fields showed the plants to be infected by Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) and Ageratum yellow v...

Samples of Cucurbita maxima plants with foliar yellowing and curling symptoms were collected in Komae City (Japan) in 2011 and shown by Southern blot hybridization to be associated with a begomovirus. Rolling circle amplification and PCR-mediated amplification with specific primers showed the presence of a begomovirus and an alphasatellite, but nei...

Tobacco leaf curl Japan virus, Honeysuckle yellow vein mosaic virus and Tomato yellow leaf curl virus are three begomoviruses that infect tomato crops in Japan. Tomato infection by begomoviruses has increased in Japan after the development of a high level of resistance to certain insecticides in some populations of the vector B. tabaci biotypes ‘B...

Carica papaya (papaya) is a fruit crop that is cultivated mostly in kitchen gardens throughout Nepal. Leaf samples of C. papaya plants with leaf curling, vein darkening, vein thickening, and a reduction in leaf size were collected from a garden in Darai village, Rampur, Nepal in 2010. Full-length clones of a monopartite Begomovirus, a betasatellite...

Bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV; Family Potyviridae, genus Potyvirus) infects legume crops in many regions of the world. It is transmitted in a non-persistent manner by aphids and is also readily seed-transmitted (3). Sweet bean (Lablab purpureus L.) is an important legume crop widely cultivated in Nepal. In December 2010, sweet bean plant...

A begomovirus associated with yellow mosaic disease in lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus) was cloned, sequenced. The virus has a bipartite genome of which DNA-A is 2745 nucleotides length and DNA-B 2669 nucleotides, and has a typical bipartite begomovirus genomic organization from the Old World. The sequences showed the highest levels of nucleotide iden...

Kidney bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris ) is an important legume crop that is grown widely in Nepal. In December 2010, P. vulgaris plants showing severe mosaic, yellowing and leaf curling symptoms were observed in different fields in the vicinity…

Chili pepper is naturally susceptible to a wide range of viruses in all south Asian countries including Pakistan. Chili leaf curl virus is a monopartite egomovirus having single stranded circular betasatellite. It has one open reading frame beta�C1, required for pathogenicity determined, symptom induction and viral accumulation. It produces viral s...

The Oman strain of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV-OM) and its associated betasatellite, an isolate of Tomato leaf curl betasatellite (ToLCB), were previously reported from Oman. Here we report the isolation of a second, previously undescribed, begomovirus [Tomato leaf curl Oman virus (ToLCOMV)] and an alphasatellite from that same plant sampl...