Plant Pathology Journal1812-53871812-5425Asian Network for Scientific Information10.3923/ppj.2010.112.121NejatN. VadamalaiG. 3201093Phytoplasmas are small bacteria with very small genomes which also have extremely low levels of the nucleotides guanine plus cytosine (G+C). They are associated with hundreds of plant diseases globally. The uneven distribution and low concentration of phytoplasmas in the phloem of infected plant, especially in woody hosts, and variations in titre according to season and plant organ are also important obstacles for efficient diagnosis. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), nested PCR and real-time PCR have been employed for phytoplasma detection. PCR is the most versatile tool for detecting phytoplasmas in their plant and insect hosts. Nested PCR with a combination of different universal primers can improve the diagnosis of unknown phytoplasmas present with low titre in the symptomatic host. Universal ribosomal primers nested with group-specific primers are extremely useful when the phytoplasma to be diagnosed belongs to a well-defined taxonomic group. Real-time PCR has been shown to be an effective method of quantifying the titre of phytoplasmas within the plant. This paper also discuss phytoplasma diseases on coconut palm.]]>Ahrens, U. and E. Seemuller,199282828832Aldaghi, M., S. Massart, S. Roussel and M.H. Jijakli,2007Candidatus Phytoplasma mali in inoculated apple trees.]]>151251258Baric, S. and J. Dalla-Via,200457135145Baric, S., C. Kerschbamer and J. Dalla-Via,200624169184Bertaccini, A.,200712673689Bertamini, M., M.S. Grando and N. Nedunchezhian,200347237242Braun, E.J. and W.A. Sinclair,1976Ulnus americana.]]>66598607Christensen, N.M., M. Nicolaisen, M. Hansen and A. Schulz,20041711751184Cronje, P., A.J. Dabek, P. Jones and A.M. Tymon,200049801801Cronje, P., A.J. Dabek, P. Jones and A.M. Tymon,200049804804Crosslin, J.M., G.J. Vandemark and J.E. Munyaneza,200690663667Dafalla, G.A. and M.T. Cousin,1988Cynodon dactylon affected with a white leaf disease in Sudan.]]>1222534Daire, X., D. Clair, W. Reinert and E. Boudon-Padieu,1997103507514Davis, R.E. and I.M. Lee,19938310081011Davis, R.E., J.P. Prince, R.W. Hammond, E.L. Dally and I.M. Lee,19922184193Deng, S. and C. Hiruki,199066140144Deng, S. and C. Hiruki,19918114751479Deng, S. and C. Hiruki,1991145361Dickinson, M.,2003Dollet, M., J. Giannotti, J.L. Renard and S.K. Ghosh,197732317322Doyle, J.J.,1990121315Edwin, B.T. and C. Mohankumara,2007714147Ekpo, E.N. and E.E. Ojomo,199034143146Escamilla, J.A., N.A. Harrison, H. Nunez, L. Alpizar, I. Cordova, I. Islas-Flores and C. Oropeza,1995Cocos nucifera L. in Mexico.]]>1995pp: 93-99pp: 93-99Evert, R.F.,1960Pyrus communis L. and its seasonal changes.]]>32127194Firrao, G., M. Garcia-Chapa and C. Marzachi,20071213531375Galetto, L. and C. Marzachi,20102010pp: 1-19pp: 1-19Galetto, L., D. Bosco and C. Marzachi,2005147191201Green, M.J., D.A. Thompson and D.J. MacKenzie,199983482485Gundersen, D.E. and I.M. Lee,199635144151Gundersen, D.E., I.M. Lee, D.A. Schaff, N.A. Harrison, C.J. Chang, R.E. Davis and D.T. Kingsbury,1996466475Harrison, N.A., I. Cordova, P.A. Richardson and R. Dibonito,19991999pp: 183-196pp: 183-196Harrison, N.A., P.A. Richardson and J.H. Tsai,19951995pp: 79-91pp: 79-91Harrison, N.A., P.A. Richardson and J.H. Tsai,199680263269Harrison, N.A., P.A. Richardson, J.B. Kramer and J.H. Tsai,1994439981008Harrison, N.A., M. Womack and M.L. Carpio,200286676681Harrison, N.A., M. Narvaez, H. Almeyda, I. Cordova, M.L. Carpio and C. Oropeza,200215808808Harrison, N.A., W. Myrie, P. Jones, M.L. Carpio and C. Oropeza,2002141183193Heinrich, M., S. Botti, L. Caprara, W. Arthofer and S. Strommer et al.,200119169179Higuchi, R., C. Fockler, G. Dollinger and R. Watson,19931110261030Hodgetts, J., T. Ball, N. Boonham, R. Mumford and M. Dickinson,200756357365Hodgetts, J., N. Boonham, R. Mumford, N. Harrison and M. Dickinson,2008Candidatus phytoplasma.]]>5818261837Hogenhout, S.A., K. Oshima, E. Ammar, S. Kakizawa, H.N. Kingdom and S. Namba,20089403423Hren, M., J. Boben, A. Rotter, P. Kralj, K. Gruden and M. Ravnikar,200756785796Jacobs, K.A., I.M. Lee, H.M. Griffiths, F.D. Miller and K.D. Bottner,200387241246Jarausch, W., M. Lansac and F. Dosba,19991474754Jarausch, W., T. Peccerella, B. Schwind, B. Jarausch and G. Krczal,2004657415420Johnson, C.G. and H.C. Harries,19769125129Jomantiene, R., R.E. Davis, J. Maas and E.L. Dally,199848269277Jones, P., P. Cronje and S. Warokka,19991999Kirkpatrick, B.C., D.C. Stenger, T.J. Morris and A.H. Purcell,1987238197200Kollar, A., E. Seemuller, F. Bonnet, C. Saillard and J.M. Bove,199080233237Kunkel, L.O.,192613646705Lee, I.M., R.E. Davis and D.E. Gundersen-Rindal,200054221555Lee, I.M., D.E. Gundersen-Rindal, R.E. Davis and I.M. Bartoszyk,19984811531169Lee, I.M., R.W. Hammond, R.E. Davis and D.E. Gundersen,199383834842Lee, I.M., D.E. Gundersen-Rindal, R.E. Davis, K.D. Bottner, C. Marcone and E. Seemuller,2004Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris, a novel phytoplasma taxon associated with aster yellows and related diseases.]]>5410371048Lee, I.M., M. Martini, C. Marcone and S.F. Zhu,2004Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi for the phytoplasma associated with elm yellows.]]>54337347Lee, I.M., Y. Zhao and K.D. Bottner,2006208791Leyva-Lopez, N.E., J.C. Ochoa-Sanchez, D.S. Leal-Klevezas and J.P. Martinez-Soriano,20024810621068Llauger, R., D. Becker, J. Cueto, E. Peralta, V. Gonzalez, M. Rodriguez and W. Rohde,2002150390395Lorenz, K.H., B. Schneider, U. Ahrens and E. Seemuller,199585771776Marcone, C., B. Schneider and E. Seemuller,2004Candidatus Phytoplasma cynodontis, the phytoplasma associated with Bermuda grass white leaf disease.]]>5410771082Marcone, C., I.M. Lee, R.E. Davis, A. Ragozzino and E. Seemuller,20005017031713Marcone, C., A. Ragozzino and E. Seemuller,199781862866Martini, M., I.M. Lee, K.D. Bottner, Y. Zhao and S. Botti et al.,20075720372051Marzachi, C.,200443228231Marzachi, C., F. Veratti, M. d'Aquilio, A. Vischi, M. Conti and G. Boccardo,200082201212Mpunami, A.A.,19971997Music, M.S., M. Krajacic and D. Skoric,2008736972Namba, S., S. Kato, S. Iwanami, H. Oyaizu, H. Shiozawa and T. Tsuchizaki,199383786791Nejat, N., K. Sijam, S.N.A. Abdullah, G. Vadamalai and M. Dickinson,2009Candidatus phytoplasma cynodontis group phytoplasma associated with coconut yellow decline in Malaysia.]]>58389389Nejat, N., K. Sijam, S.N.A. Abdullah, G. Vadamalai and M. Dickinson,2009613311340Nejat, N., K. Sijam, S.N.A. Abdullah, G. Vadamalai and M. Dickinson,20095811521160Nejat, N., K. Sijam, S.N.A. Abdullah, G. Vadamalai, Z. Sidek and M. Dickinson,201058389389Nienhaus, F. and K.G. Steiner,19766010001002Nipah, J.O., P. Jones and M.J. Dickinson,200756777784Prince, J.P., R.E. Davis, T.K. Wolf, I.M. Lee and B. Mogen et al.,19938311301137Schaad, N.W. and R.D. Fredric,200224250258Schaff, D., I.M. Lee and R.E. Davis,199218615031509Schaper, U. and E. Seemuller,198272736742Schneider, B., A. Padovan, S. De La Rue, R. Eichner, R. Davis, A. Bernuetz and K. Gibb,199950333342Schneider, B. and K.S. Gibb,199714333813389Schneider, B., E. Seemuller, C.D. Smart and B.C. Kirkpatrick,19951995pp: 369-380pp: 369-380Schuiling, M., F. Nienhaus and D.A. Kaiza,198188665677Spoodee, R., B.L. Schneider, A.C. Padovan and K.S. Gibb,19993133140Seemuller, E.C., U. Marcone, A. Lauer, A. Ragozzino and M. Goschl,199880326Seemuller, E., U. Schaper and F. Zimbelmann,198491371382Sharmila, L.B., S. Bhasker, M.T. Thelly, T.E. Boby and C. Mohankumar,20041315Smart, C.D., B. Schneider, C.L. Blomquist, L.J. Guerra and N.A. Harrison et al.,19966229882993Snehi, S.K., M.S. Khan, S.K. Raj, S. Mall, M. Singh and G.P. Rao,2008Candidatus phytoplasma cynodontis associated with bermuda grass white leaf disease in India.]]>57770770Tymon, A.M., P. Jones and N.A. Harrison,1998132437452Wang, K. and C. Hiruki,200554625633Warokka, J.S.,19991999pp: 2735Warokka, J.,20052005Warokka, J.S., P. Jones and M.J. Dickinson,200612154160Wei, W., R.E. Davis, I.M. Lee and Y. Zhao,20075718551867Wei, W., S. Kakizawa, S. Suzuki, H.Y. Jung and H. Nishigawa et al.,200494244250Welliver, R.,1999251722Zahoor, A., M. Bashir, K. Nakashima, T. Mitsueda and N. Murata,199527251252Zhang, Y., J.K. Uyemoto and B.C. Kirkpatrick,1998714550Chen, T.C., C.S. Lee and M.J. Chen,1972Cynodon dactylon and Brachiaria distachya affected by white leaf disease.]]>1972