Simultaneous detection of wheat dwarf virus, northern cereal mosaic virus, barley yellow striate mosaic virus and rice black-streaked dwarf virus in wheat by multiplex RT-PCR

Wheat dwarf virus (WDV), barley yellow striate mosaic virus (BYSMV), rice black-streaked dwarf virus (RBSDV) and northern cereal mosaic virus (NCMV) are four viruses infecting wheat and causing similar symptoms. In this paper, a multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (m-RT-PCR) method has been developed for the simultaneous detection and discrimination of these viruses. The protocol uses specific primer set for each virus and produces four distinct fragments (273, 565, 783 and 1296 bp), detecting the presence of RBSDV, BYSMV, WDV and NCMV, respectively. Annealing temperature, concentrations of dNTP, Taq polymerase and Mg2+ were optimized for the m-RT-PCR. The detection limit of the assay was up to 10−2 dilution. The amplification specificity of these primers was tested against a range of field samples from different regions of China, where RBSDV, BYSMV, WDV have been detected. This study fulfills the need for a rapid and specific wheat virus detection that also has the potential for investigating the epidemiology of these new viral diseases.