Aims:
The purpose of the project is to investigate the virus pressure on greenhouse vegetable production in Finland. The project will also facilitate the collecting of material required for validation of deep sequencing methods for the use of the Plant Analytics Laboratory Unit, thereby promoting the adoption of these methods in examining official samples.
Keywords:
vegetable production, plant protection, plant health and plant diseases, plant inspection
Responsible project leader:
Johanna Santala, Senior Researcher, Doctor of Science in Agriculture and Forestry, Finnish Food Authority, Plant Analytics
Person at the the Finnish Food Authority responsible for the project:
Johanna Santala, Senior Researcher, Doctor of Science in Agriculture and Forestry, Plant Analytics
In cooperation with:
Euphresco (Community Network for practices in Plant Virology)
Project status:
Starting up
Year of commencement:
2020
Year of completion:
2021
Project is financed by:
MMM-YHT (R&D Research & development, Joint research)
Abstract:
Finnish Food Authority monitors production of vegetable seedlings by testing the production yearly for certain viruses and viroids. Additionally, the vegetable production is monitored for presence of quarantine pests. Testing for all possible viruses is, however, not possible in the frame of official inspections. In deed, yield losses occur yearly in vegetable production due to viruses. The Plant Analytics laboratory of Finnish Food Authority has virus or virus group specific tests available for certain viruses, for example Pepino mosaic virus and Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus. These viruses are frequently found from symptomatic vegetable plants. There is, however, no up-to-date information available on the occurrence of other viruses in the vegetable production, which makes the efficient prevention of virus infections difficult. Additionally, the vegetable producers are concerned about the spreading of viruses via plant-feeding insects. This project aims to test vegetable plants and insects possibly acting as virus vectors using a generic virus detection method based on analysis of virus-derived RNAs. This method allows simultaneous detection of all known and new viruses in a sample. The results will assist in solving the current virus-related problems in vegetable production. Also, knowledge of the viruses present in the current production helps in assessing the possible risks related to introduction of new plant species to production. Additionally, information gained on analysis of virus-derived RNAs promotes the adoption of the method in official plant health testing.