ELISA-Based Studies on the Ecology and Epidemiology of Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus in Indiana

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Abstract
Seasonal occurrence and spread of Rhopalosiphum padi and of PAV- and RPV-like isolates of barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) were assessed by observation and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay from 1981 to 1984 in wheat [Triticum aestivum] and oat [Avena sativa] crops and in oat bait plants exposed periodically at selected sites at the Purdue University Agronomy Farm. Aphid activity and virus infection were much higher in 1981 and 1982 than in 1983 and 1984. Peak virus spread and aphid activity generally occurred in the spring and fall. The results suggested that a major source of BYDV is in exogenous aphid populations moving from distant plants in wind currents, especially in the spring. Transmission from local grasses appears to be sporadic, and less common. In the fall, aphid populations colonizing winter wheat probably are from both distant and local sources, depending on conditions. One such source is corn (maize), but its potential as an oversummering reservoir of virus between wheat crops seems variable. Visual surveys understimate the occurrence of BYDV, probably because commonly grown cultivars of wheat and oats have been selected for tolerance.