Electrotherapy; a promising therapy for virus eradication from olive shoot tip cultures cv. Meshkat

Abstract Olive tree harbors several viruses affecting the yield and quality of fruit worldwide. Application of virus-free planting materials is one of the main strategies to counteract virus diseases. The elimination ofArabis mosaic virus(ArMV), Cherry leaf roll virus(CLRV), Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) and Strawberry latent ringspot virus(SLRSV) by different electrotherapies in combination with shoot tip culture was investigated in a native Iranian olive cultivar Meshkat to find out the most efficient virus elimination procedure. The results showed that survival, regrowth and proliferation rates were dependent on the therapy and meristem type. In addition, the regrowth rate in the virus mixed-infected cv. Meshkat was notably increased by doubling the electrotherapy duration. ArMV, CLRV, CMV and SLRSV were completely eradicated by electrotherapy treatment (35 mA, 100 V, 30 min) and the apical shoot tip culture proved to be the most compatible technique. The therapy efficiency index was 54 for all studied viruses. The results concluded that the combination of electrotherapy with shoot tip culture can be successfully used as a virus elimination method for producing virus-free olive plants.