Abstract
Symptoms of general stunting and yellowing of leaves were observed in diseased cultivated strawberry (Fragariaxananassa Duchesne) in Lithuania. Analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences amplified by PCR indicated that the symptoms were associated with infection by a phytoplasma, designated strawberry yellows (StrawY) phytoplasma. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that StrawY phytoplasma, Candidatus Phytoplasma australiense, Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris, stolbur phytoplasma and Candidatus Phytoplasma japonicum shared a common ancestor, but were mutually distinct. Nucleotide sequence alignments of a 1·3 kb 16S rRNA gene sequence fragment revealed that StrawY phytoplasma shared 97·4 % or less similarity with previously described Candidatus Phytoplasma species. These results, in addition to natural host and geographical occurrence, support the recognition of StrawY phytoplasma as a representative of a novel taxon, Candidatus Phytoplasma fragariae.