Investigation of Tomato ringspot virus (ToRSV) by Real-Time TaqMan RT-PCR in Hakkari province, Turkey

Tomato ringspot virus (ToRSV) belongs to the Nepovirus genus in the family Secoviridae. It has a wide host range and is listed as a quarantine virus in Turkey. In this study, 80 leaf samples were collected tomato, pepper, cucumber and grapevine cultivation sites located in three different parts of Hakkari province: Şemdinli and Cukurca districts and city center. Real-time TaqMan RT-PCR (Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction) method was used for the detection of the virus. Amplification was carried out in reaction mix including TaqMan probe, QuantiNova Probe RT-PCR kit (Qiagen, Germany) using primers based on 3’-UTR (untranslated region) of virus, which amplified a 182-bp product. ToRSV was detected in 13 of 80 samples and treshold cycle (CT) values ranged between 23.9–37.4. 16.25% of the samples collected from the districts were found to be infected with ToRSV whereas no ToRSV was detected in the samples collected from the city center. In Cukurca district, the virus was detected on pepper and cucumber samples and it was present on tomato, pepper, cucumber and grapevine samples in Şemdinli district. This study provides, to our knowledge, the first report of molecular detection of ToRSV by real-time TaqMan RT-PCR in Turkey.