'Candidatus Phytoplasma americanum'(PHYPAE)
Distribution details in Australia
Current pest situation evaluated by EPPO on the basis of information dated
2026: Absent, unreliable record
From NPPO: Present, restricted distribution
From country itself (1992): present in Victoria and South Australia. Recorded in New South Wales as tomato big-bud phytoplasma (q.v.).
'Candidatus Phytoplasma americanum' was described in 2006 and corresponds to the 16Sr group 16Sr XVIII-A (Lee et al., 2006; Bertaccini et al., 2019 and 2022; Wei et al., 2022). The older reference further down pre-dates the description and may relate to other phytoplasma. No record mentioning presence of 'Ca. Phytoplasma americanum' in this country was found (at 2026-01).
References cited in this comment:
* Lee IM, Bottner KD, Secor G, Rivera-Varas V (2006). ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma americanum’, a phytoplasma associated with a potato purple top wilt disease complex. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, 56(7), 1593-1597. https://doi.org/10.1099/ijs.0.64251-0
* Bertaccini A (2019) The phytoplasma classification between ‘Candidatus species’ provisional status and ribosomal grouping system (2019) Phytopathogenic Mollicutes 9(1), 1-2.
* Bertaccini A, Arocha-Rosete Y, Contaldo N, Duduk B, Fiore N, Montano HG, Kube M, Kuo C-H, Martini M, Oshima K, Quaglino F, Schneider B, Wei W, Zamorano A (2022). Revision of the ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ’species description guidelines. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, 72(4), 005353. https://doi.org/10.1099/ijsem.0.005353
* Wei W, Zhao Y (2022) Phytoplasma Taxonomy: Nomenclature, Classification, and Identification. Biology 2022(11), 1119. 23pp. https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11081119
'Candidatus Phytoplasma americanum' was described in 2006 and corresponds to the 16Sr group 16Sr XVIII-A (Lee et al., 2006; Bertaccini et al., 2019 and 2022; Wei et al., 2022). The older reference further down pre-dates the description and may relate to other phytoplasma. No record mentioning presence of 'Ca. Phytoplasma americanum' in this country was found (at 2026-01).
References cited in this comment:
* Lee IM, Bottner KD, Secor G, Rivera-Varas V (2006). ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma americanum’, a phytoplasma associated with a potato purple top wilt disease complex. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, 56(7), 1593-1597. https://doi.org/10.1099/ijs.0.64251-0
* Bertaccini A (2019) The phytoplasma classification between ‘Candidatus species’ provisional status and ribosomal grouping system (2019) Phytopathogenic Mollicutes 9(1), 1-2.
* Bertaccini A, Arocha-Rosete Y, Contaldo N, Duduk B, Fiore N, Montano HG, Kube M, Kuo C-H, Martini M, Oshima K, Quaglino F, Schneider B, Wei W, Zamorano A (2022). Revision of the ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ’species description guidelines. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, 72(4), 005353. https://doi.org/10.1099/ijsem.0.005353
* Wei W, Zhao Y (2022) Phytoplasma Taxonomy: Nomenclature, Classification, and Identification. Biology 2022(11), 1119. 23pp. https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11081119
* Harding, R.M.; Teakle, D.S. (1985) Mycoplasma-like organisms as causal agents of potato purple top wilt in Queensland. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 36, 443-449.