Curing viruses in Pleurotus ostreatus by growth on a limited nutrient medium containing cAMP and rifamycin

Oyster mushroom spherical virus (OMSV) and oyster mushroom isometric virus (OMIV) are the causative agents of a fruiting body deformation disease in the edible mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus. The curing of these mycoviruses was facilitated by a serial transfer of infected mycelia onto a limited nutrient medium containing 1 mM of cAMP and 75 μg/ml of rifamycin (cAMP-rifamycin plate). The mycelia were grown on cAMP-rifamycin plates for 5 successive passages. ELISA and RT-PCR showed that the amount of mycoviruses inside the mycelia decreased significantly with increasing numbers of passages. The mycelia became free of viruses after 5 successive passages. Cultivation of the virus-cured mycelia on a mushroom compost medium produced a normal harvest, whereas the spawn infected with viruses failed to produce any fruiting bodies.