CSS is the causal agent of Rio Grande corn stunt, an especially severe disease of maize in Mexico and Central and South American countries. In the USA, CSS has been found in many of the southern states and California. CSS only infects maize and other relative teosintes, and is more common in sweet corn and popcorn than in field corn. Symptoms on corn may vary with the corn cultivar. Young leaves are chlorotic or exhibit broad chlorotic striping and may purple as they age.
Internodes are shorter and kernel set is reduced or absent.
Symptom severity may partially depend upon when the plants were infected. The test is specific and relatively sensitive, producing a moderately strong reaction. This CSS test shows no cross-reaction with healthy maize tissue. Also, no cross-reaction was found with other related corn pathogens such as maize rayado fino virus and maize bushy stunt phytoplasma. This test is recommended for testing CSS in maize.