Abstract: In the present study, the relationship between the nutritional status of leaves and the development of symptoms of cotton leaf curl virus (CLCuV) in two cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars (i.e. CIM-240 and S-12) was investigated. The incidence of disease attack was found to be 100% in the S-12 cultivar and 16% in the CIM-240 cultivar. Geminivirus particles in infected leaves were confirmed by transmission electron microscope examination of highly specific geminivirus coat protein antisera-treated cell sap. The CLCuV impaired the accumulation of different nutrients in both cultivars. A marked decrease in the accumulation of Ca2+ and K+ was observed in infected leaves. However, the disease had no effect on leaf concentrations of Na+, N, and P. It was observed that the curling of leaf margins in CLCuV-infected plants was associated with the leaf Ca2+ content; leaf curling was severe in plants with a significant reduction in Ca2+ content. Moreover, leaf K+ content was found to be associated with resistance/susceptibility to CLCuV infection.(Author for correspondence.Tel: +92 41 265 2666; Fax: +92 41 265 4213; E-mail: niabmyashraf@yahoo.co.uk)

Key words: geminiviruses, Gossypium hirsutum, leaf curling, nutrient accumulation.