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Diffusion of the Nearctic leafhopper Scaphoideus titanus Ball in Europe: a consequence of human trading activity

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Abstract

Scaphoideus titanus Ball is a Nearctic leafhopper that was introduced for the first time in Europe probably at the beginning of the 20th century. In Europe, this species is a specialist on cultivated grapevines and is of great economic importance as the vector of Flavescence dorée (FD), a Grapevine Yellows disease caused by Candidatus Phytoplasma vitis. The Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique was employed to obtain genetic information about the diffusion and the structure of S. titanus populations. Two American and 14 European populations were analysed. A total of 188 reproducible bands, obtained from three arbitrary primers, were considered to assess the amount and the pattern of genetic variation within and among leafhopper populations. American populations showed high levels of intra-population polymorphism and dissimilarity and appeared to be the most isolated of all the tested samples. The results confirm the historical role of American samples as the sources for the more recently founded European populations. RAPD analyses revealed a weak genetic structure of European samples that could probably be explained invoking the human role in their diffusion. The non-natural spreading of S. titanus across Europe is in fact attributable to the exchange of grapevine canes and grafts carrying eggs that the insect laid under the bark to overwinter.

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Acknowledgements

This study is part of the Project “Biodiversità della Vite Coltivata in Italia e sua Protezione dai Parassiti” funded by the “Fondazione Bussolera-Branca” in Mairano di Casteggio, Pavia, Italy. We are indebted to Elisabeth Boudon Padieu (Biologie et Ecologie des Phytoplasmes, UMR Plante Microbe Environnement, INRA of Dijon), to Alberto Alma, Simona Palermo and Domenico Bosco (Di.Va.P.R.A. Entomologia e Zoologia applicate all’Ambiente “Carlo Vidano”, Università di Torino), and to Piero Attilio Bianco (Istituto di Patologia Vegetale, Università di Milano), for supplying the wild-collected specimens of Scaphoideus titanus and for helpful discussion about the leafhopper biology. We thank the several unknown people from France, Spain, Slovenia, Swiss and USA who provided invaluable assistance in the collection of wild material. We also thank anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the manuscript.

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  1. Dipartimento di Biologia Animale, Università di Pavia, Piazza Botta 9, 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Sabrina Bertin, Nisrine Karam, Ludvik M. Gomulski, Anna R. Malacrida & Giuliano Gasperi

  2. Dipartimento di Genetica e Microbiologia, Università di Pavia, Via Ferrata 1, 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Carmela R. Guglielmino

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  1. Sabrina Bertin
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Correspondence to Giuliano Gasperi.

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Bertin, S., Guglielmino, C.R., Karam, N. et al. Diffusion of the Nearctic leafhopper Scaphoideus titanus Ball in Europe: a consequence of human trading activity. Genetica 131, 275–285 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10709-006-9137-y

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