Susceptibility of Pisum spp. germplasm to legume viruses and virus transmission by seeds

Under controlled inoculation, a set of 24 accessions of Pisum spp. (P. abys sinicum, P. sativum subsp. asiaticum, P. sativum subsp. sativum, P, sativum subsp. tibetanicum) germplasm was studied for resistance to three legume v iruses: pea seed-borne mosaic virus (PSbMV), pea enation mosaic virus (PEMV ) and alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV). No complete resistance was found to the v iruses in the Pisum accessions. All tested accessions were highly susceptib le to AMV and PEMV. Only Pisum sativum subsp. sativum convar, speciosum var . arvense (W 180) exhibited a high level of resistance to PEMV. A relativel y heterogeneous response was found in the studied set after inoculation wit h PSbMV. In P. abyssinicum (W 1446) and four accessions of Pisum sativum (W 1827 W 1875, W 1881, W 1966) partial resistance was recorded to PSbMV. The second part of our study concentrated on the transmission of PSbMV by seed s. OF the Four Pisum species tested only in P. sativum subsp, sativum conva r. speciosum var. commato-semineum (W 1901) was transmission of PSbMV by se eds not confirmed. There was no relation recorded between the level of resi stance and virus transmission.