Detection and Characterization of Viruses and Viroids in Diospyros Species from Florida, U.S.A.

Persimmon is a hardwood tree in the genus Diospyros that is commonly cultivated for its fruit in Eurasia and North America. Recent advances in metagenomics have resulted in the discovery of multiple novel viruses and viroids infecting persimmon trees in Asia and Europe. Recent survey work revealed the presence of viral pathogens in North America in Diospyros kaki, the Japanese persimmon, which is the most widely cultivated species globally. In this study, a survey of both D. kaki and D. virginiana, a native to the southeastern United States, was conducted to evaluate the viral infection status of these species in Florida. It was determined that out of the eight viral pathogens known from persimmon, six are present in Florida: apple fruit crinkle viroid (AFCVd), persimmon cryptic virus (PeCV), persimmon viroid (PeVd), persimmon virus A (PeVA), persimmon virus B (PeVB), and persimmon viroid 2 (PeVd2). In D. kaki, the most common viroid was PeVd and the most common virus was PeVA. In D. virginiana, PeVd2 was the most common viroid and PeVA was the most common virus. Most of the infections in D. kaki were mixed infections, while most infections in D. virginiana were single infections. The findings of this study are the first evidence of viral pathogens in Florida in D. kaki and the first evidence of these pathogens in native D. virginiana in North America. Future efforts should focus on vector surveys and transmission experiments.