First report of olive latent virus 2 in wild castor bean (Ricinus communis) in Italy

Wild castor bean plants (Ricinus communis), showing bright yellow mosaic leaf symptoms were collected in Vibo Valentia (Calabria region, Southern Italy) during spring and summer of 2005 and 2006. Symptoms consisted of yellow speckled leaves with significant mottled areas; some leaves also contained an arabesque line pattern (Fig. 1). Electron microscope observations of sap extracts from symptomatic leaves showed semi-spherical to bacilliform particles consistent with Alfamovirus and Oleavirus