Molecular detection and characterization of cherry virus A in sweet cherry, apricot and plum in Serbia

Cherry virus A (CVA) is a graft transmissible virus that infects cherries and other stone fruit species. One hundred six trees of sour and sweet cherry, plum, apricot, and peach from 22 locations in Serbia were tested for the presence of CVA. RT-PCR analysis of 106 samples revealed the CVA presence in 13 samples, including eight sweet cherries, three apricots, and two plums. Sequence analysis of the partial movement protein gene confirmed that Serbian isolates share 89.07–100% nucleotide identities with CVA sequences in GenBank. Our CVA isolates from apricots and plums share 100% nucleotide sequence identity with isolates from Australia, Hungary, Russia, and the Czech Republic. Isolates from sweet cherries showed 100% identity with isolates from Canada, China, India, and the Czech Republic. Phylogenetic analyses based on the ML method showed that the Serbian CVA isolates belonged to three out of six identified groups. No clear grouping of isolates based on geographical origin was evidenced, but there is a strong association between groups and host plants. Our results reveal the presence of CVA for the first time in apricots and plums in Serbia.