Reaction of potato varieties toPotato mop-top virus infection in the andes

The unexpected detection ofPotato mop-top virus (PMTV) in potatoes growing at several locations in the U.S.A. and Canada in 2002 has led to the realization that this soil-borne virus may be widespread throughout the potato-producing regions of both countries. A lack of information concerning the response of U.S. cultivars to PMTV infection caused us to examine the effects of PMTV on field-grown plants at three locations in the Peruvian Andes where the virus and its fungal vector,Spongospora subterranea, are endemic. All 21 U.S. cultivars tested proved susceptible to PMTV infection, especially at La Victoria where the overall incidence of both PMTV and powdery scab was high. Symptom expression in the foliage proved to be an unreliable indicator of virus infection, and thus, more reliable serological (NCM-ELISA) and nucleic acid-based techniques (NASH and RT-PCR) were used to monitor tuber tissue for the presence of PMTV. As much as 25% of field-grown tubers of cvs Kennebec, Monona, and Norland were infected with PMTV, but no correlation between virus infection and either the incidence or severity of powdery scab for any variety was apparent. Although PMTV infection did not result in the appearance of spraing or other internal necrotic reactions resembling those reported from many North American and European locations, a disproportionate proportion of infected tubers did exhibit a reticulate surface cracking. In hydroponic culture, the proportion of cracked tubers increased dramatically when the nutrient solution was seeded with virus-infestedS. subterranea. Comparatively few tubers of cvs Monona and Russet Burbank exhibited this surface cracking, suggesting that these two varieties may be somewhat tolerant to PMTV infection.