Natural infection of wheat by the type strain of Soil-borne wheat mosaic virus in a field in Southern Germany

Molecular analyses revealed that a virus causing a severe disease of wheat in one field in Southern Germany is closely related to the Nebraska type strain of Soil-borne wheat mosaic virus (SBWMV) and only distantly related to Soil-borne cereal mosaic virus that is widely distributed in Europe. The latter virus was not found in the SBWMVcontaining leaf samples. This is the first report of the occurrence of SBWMV in Germany, and perhaps in all of Europe, which has been confirmed on the molecular level.