Identification of a ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’ 16SrI-F strain infecting periwinkle in Iran

Since 2021, symptoms of little leaf disease have been observed in periwinkle plants grown in Eram garden, Fars province, Iran. The agent of the Eram garden periwinkle little leaf (EGPLL) disease was transmitted to periwinkle and eggplant plants through dodder and induced phytoplasma type symptoms. Phylogenetic and iPhyClassifier analyses using a 1250 bp fragment of the 16S rRNA gene, obtained via nested PCR, cloning and sequencing identified the EGPLL phytoplasma as a ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’ strain belonging to the 16Sr group I, subgroup F. This is the first report of a 16SrI-F phytoplasma strain naturally occurring in periwinkle in Iran.