Molecular investigation on the genetic polymorphism of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum’ detected in plum and apricot fruit trees

Plum and apricot samples were collected from plants showing symptoms resembling those caused by phytoplasma and grown in different orchards localized in Central and Southern Italy. Samples resulted positive for the presence of 'Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum' by molecular analysis. A further genomic investigation on the non-ribosomal DNA region encoding the elongation factor Tu (tuf gene) allowed to differentiate a new molecular variant of the phytoplasma in plum samples collected in Calabria region.