Molecular Characterization and Variability Analyses of Apple Stem Pitting Virus and Apple Stem Grooving Virus Isolates Infecting Apple in Kashmir, India

Apple stem pitting virus (ASPV) and apple stem grooving virus (ASGV) belonging to the family Betaflexiviridae in the genus Foveavirus and Capillovirus respectively are two major apple viruses. They are economically important pathogens in commercial pome and stone fruit crops. Mixed infections of ASGV and ASPV are common phenomenon observed in apples trees and other temperate fruits growing worldwide. This study reports the molecular characterization of ASPV and ASGV, from five different apple cultivars of Shopian and Pulwama regions of Kashmir, India. The presence of ASPV and ASGV was confirmed by RT-PCR and sequencing. The nucleotide sequence identity of the CP gene for ASPV isolates ranged 77.56–99.83