INTERNATIONAL WORKING GROUP ON FRUIT TREE VIRUSES

DETECTION OF VIRUS AND VIRUS-LIKE DISEASES OF FRUIT TREES

The tables of laboratory assays, bioassays, and indicator hosts were last presented in Acta Horticulturae 472:757-783,1998. However, only minor modifications to the previous publication in Acta Horticulturae 309: 407-418, 1992, were made. Changes included, a different layout of the approved herbaceous and woody indicators, and updated nomenclature and knowledge about the causal agents of diseases. As there has been rapid progress in the development of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based assays in the 1990’s, it was decided at the 1997 Bethesda Symposium to compile a new list of laboratory assays. Each list for the individual pome and stone fruit species contained the previously approved ELISA tests and, in addition, nucleic acid based tests. Due to the constant development in methodology and often the existence of different probes, primers and protocols, only key publications were referenced. Furthermore, the assays are mostly well adapted for equipped laboratories, however, in most cases, validation of the tests on a broader range of isolates is required. This situation had not basically changed at the 2000 Canterbury Symposium. Therefore, the list of molecular assays was only updated in some cases and expanded where tests for additional viruses, viroids and phytoplasma diseases had become available. During a business meeting of the Fruit Tree Virus Working Group, candidate indicators submitted prior to the Symposium and those of the 1992 list were either approved, deleted or listed in the current candidate indicator suggestions. This list together with new submissions to the Committee will be considered at the upcoming Symposium in Spain in the year 2003. More detailed comments on the potential of the PCR tests are listed under technical notes.

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