Molecular detection of Grapevine fleck virus-like viruses

Abstract

Molecular reagents have been developed for virus-specific and simultaneous (virus-non-specific) detection of Grapevine fleck virus (GFkV) and allied viruses, ie. Grapevine asteroid mosaic-associated virus (GAMaV) and Grapevine red globe virus (GRGV). Degenerate primers designed on nucleotide sequences of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RD) and methyltransferase (MTR) domains of the GFkV genome, were able to give amplification products of the expected size from total nucleic acid extracts of:

1. vines infected with GFkV, GAMaV, and GRGV;
2. a Californian grapevine accession infected by a marafi-like virus;
3. Greek grapevine accessions infected by an unidentified agent that induced symptoms reminiscent of those elicited by GAMaV in Vitis rupestris.

Degenerate primers designed on the nucleotide sequence of the helicase (HEL) domain of the GFLV genome recognized all the above viruses except for GAMaV and the unidentified Greek viral agent. RD primer set worked well also with crude grapevine cortical scrapings, thus constituting a useful universal reagent for the non-specific molecular identification of GFkV-like viruses in Vitis . The marafi-like virus from California was amplified by all sets of primers, but was recognized only by the GRGV-specific probe, suggesting that it is a likely isolate of GRGV: Likewise, the unidentified virus from Greek vines shared sequence homology with GFkV and allied viruses (GAMaV and GRGV) but exhibited differences relevant enough that call for further investigations to establish its taxonomic position. While GRGV was identified, though with a very low incidence, in some 11 southern Italian grapevine cultivars, no evidence was obtained for infection by GAMaV in any of 50 cultivars analyzed.