Dasheen mosaic virus (DsMV) is one of the most important viral pathogens of aroids and can cause major economic losses for ornamental crops. Here, we present the detection and molecular characterisation of DsMV isolates originating from Monstera adansonii plants in Poland. Moreover, the genetic variability of DsMV isolates was analyzed based on the coat protein gene ( CP) of the Polish and other DsMV isolates described to date. The presence of DsMV was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with specific, diagnostic primers in three out of ten examined plants. To obtain full-length sequences of CP, two pairs of primers were designed and used in the RT-PCR. The specificity of obtained products was confirmed by Sanger sequencing. The obtained sequences of CP were compared with 44 other DsMV sequences retrieved from the GenBank. Analyses revealed that DsMV population is very diverse. The variability of DsMV isolates was confirmed by low sequence identity and pervasive recombination events. The phylogenetic analysis was performed based on 37 non-recombinant CP sequences. The maximum-likelihood reconstruction revealed that the Polish isolates are distinct and grouped separately from other DsMV isolates. Due to the high genetic diversity, detecting the virus could be difficult. Nonetheless disease management relies strongly on a fast and accurate identification of the causal agent. To our knowledge this is the first report of DsMV in Poland.

One of the most common reasons for horse lameness is subchondral bone cysts (SBCs), which are especially evident in young horse athletes. It is believed that SBC development is strongly associated with an individual’s bone growth and/or bone microstructure impairment. Current methods of SBC treatment include pharmacological treatment or surgical procedures which may allow the bone within the cyst to rebuild and be restored to properly developed bone tissue. Thus, we propose filling the SBCs with a 3D complex of alginate hydrogel and autologous adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs). We have observed at the in vitro level, that this hydrogel complex induces osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation potential through the upregulation of bone morphogenetic protein, osteopontin, collagen type I and aggrecan mRNA levels. Moreover, we detected the creation of a 3D extracellular matrix (EM). To investigate the complex in vivo, we chose 8 horses of varying age suffering from SBC, which resulted in lameness, to undergo experimental surgery. We documented the horses’ clinical appearance, lameness and radiographic appearance, to determine that there was clinical improvement in 87.75% of the patients (n=7, out of 8 horses) 6 months postoperatively and 100% (n=8, out of 8 horses) a year after surgery. These results are promising for the potential of this procedure to become the standard in SBC treatment.