A group at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences has succeeded in developing the world's first genetic diagnostic technology for the simple and rapid detection of ToMMV (tomato mottle mosaic virus), an emerging virus that causes devastating damage to the production of tomatoes and other crops.
ToMMV was first reported in tomatoes in Mexico in 2013, and is a type of emerging virus that has expanded its infection range to countries around the world, including China and the United States, at an astonishing speed in just 10 years.It infects solanaceous crops such as tomatoes and hot peppers, and causes mosaic symptoms and atrophy of leaves, necrosis of fruits, etc., resulting in a significant decrease in yield.Since it is easily transmitted through plant-to-plant contact, agricultural tools, and even seeds, it is feared that it will spread all over the world.
Fortunately, there has been no case of an outbreak in Japan yet. is a problem.In this study, we aimed to develop a new ToMMV diagnostic technique that overcomes these limitations.
This group introduced the LAMP method, a globally patented gene amplification method developed in Japan. The LAMP method is characterized by its high sensitivity, simplicity, and rapidity, and is not easily affected by contaminants. Therefore, we succeeded in constructing a simple diagnostic system in which a toothpick poked into the specimen is simply immersed in the reaction solution.Furthermore, by designing to target genomic regions with low sequence identity to closely related viruses based on all available ToMMV isolates, the LAMP diagnostic technology developed by the research group is less susceptible to false negatives and false positives. achieved a very high specificity that can avoidAs a result, they were able to detect the virus with just one puncture of a ToMMV-infected tomato leaf.
The development of ToMMV diagnostic technology using the LAMP method is the first in the world, and boasts 10 to 100 times higher detection sensitivity than the conventional PCR method.As a result, ToMMV infection can be easily tested anytime, anywhere without the need for expensive experimental equipment or specialized knowledge, and it is expected to enable early control of the virus.
Paper information:【Viruses】A Reverse-Transcription Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Technique to Detect Tomato Mottle Mosaic Virus, an Emerging Tobamovirus
