January 2021 - 19

TOMATOES
VIRUS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
expensive for TaqMan), " van Beckhoven
said. " Both tests need a laboratory and
trained personnel to perform the test. "
He said the ELISA reagents that are
produced from the antiserum are already
available in the U.S., and " besides this, we
know that Agdia Inc. will have an ELISA
format for detection of ToBRFV (was set to
be) available in December. "
Prime Diagnostics hopes to develop
other assays with its new antiserum, or
develop other tests or assays with the
same antiserum - such as Luminex, or
Lateral Flow Devices that can be used
by untrained personnel in fields and
greenhouses for immediate testing, he said.
Prime Diagnostics' new reagent has a
high reactivity to ToBRFV specifically as
opposed to other tobamoviruses, such as
tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and Tomato
mosaic virus (ToMV).
" Some labs want to see only if a
tobamovirus is present without truly
knowing which virus is. In this case, the
correct diagnosis is not a big issue, " van
Beckhoven said. " Other labs, however,
want to know exactly which virus is
present because of quarantine reasons.
ToBRFV is a quarantine organism and
extra measures need to be taken when the
virus is present in a crop or seed lot. "
Better availability of tests can help trade,
he said.
" Imports and exports are closely
monitored by the phytosanitary bodies
and only they can issue 'passports' for
healthy seed lots or plant material, " van
Beckhoven said. " A greater availability
of tests could speed up the process for
issuing these passports. "
Resistant variety launched
Syngenta Vegetable Seeds in late
November announced the launch of its
first ToBRFV resistant variety, available in
early 2021.
" This first introduction is a beeftype
(tomato) for passive greenhouse
production, " Ruud Kaagman, Global
Crop Unit Head for tomatoes, wrote in
an email to VGN. " The introduction
will be in Middle-East/Mediterranean
countries. This is where the virus was
first reported and where growers are
facing significant production losses. "
Plans for Syngenta include rolling out
the resistance in different varieties like
cluster, cherry, baby plum and saladette.
" This is running at full speed so within
the coming years you will see many
more introductions of resistant varieties, "
Kaagman said. " We will quickly introgress
the resistance into the different tomato
segments which certainly also cover
growers in the U.S. (and) Mexico. These
introgressions are currently running and
we aim to introduce (them) within the
coming years. "
Another goal is finding broader
resistance to the virus, he said.
" It is essential that growers keep the
level of hygiene even in case the varieties
VGN | JANUARY 2021 | 19
SVPB8415 X10R
SVPB8415 X10R is a new main
season green to yellow bell
pepper from Seminis. It has great
yield potential along with X10R
technology which gives it the
highest level of bacterial leaf spot
resistance. Mature fruit turn from
green to bright yellow very quickly
and maintain the fruit integrity
longer than most.
QUICK TRIP
Quick Trip is an Attribute II - 72
day bi-color synergistic. This early
variety benefits from Syngenta's
trait stack for weed control and
insect protection. Early season
vigor makes this an excellent
variety for spring plantings while
maintaining the eating qualities
often found in later maturing
sweet corns.
RAISING THE BAR
IN QUALITY, FLAVOR, AND YIELD
Bringing you the best products in partnership with
Sakata, Seminis, and Syngenta.
Visit ruppseeds.com to request or download your copy
of our 2021 catalog including 40 new products.
800-700-1199 * ruppseeds.com
FOOL'S GOLD
Fool's Gold is a 10-14 pound
upright, tan pumpkin with a
beautiful dark green handle.
Rupp trial cooperators tell us
that, at their roadside stands,
Fool's Gold is one of the first
to sell out.
RED SNAPPER
are resistant, " Kaagman said. " ToBRFV is
mechanically transmittable meaning that
it can be transferred by tools, people, fresh
produce, etc., and it is very persistent. When
the virus is still around there is always
the risk that it mutates, risking a decrease
of protection by the current genetic
resistance. Syngenta is working on a multisource
resistance to give much stronger
and durable resistance to ToBRFV. "
Gene for high resistance
Netherlands-based Enza Zaden, a
vegetable breeding and seed production
RAISING THE BAR
See VIRUS, page 20
Part of the tomato research team at Enza Zaden. From the left are Sergio de la Fuente van
Bentem, plant pathology researcher; Kees Könst, crop research director, tomato breeding;
Martijn van Stee, crop breeding manager tomato. Photo: Enza Zaden
Red Snapper is a main season large round
tomato from Sakata. Fruit have exceptional
smooth shoulders and a deep red interior.
It can be used as a vine ripe or a mature
green type. It is well suited for cool season
production.
http://www.ruppseeds.com http://www.ruppseeds.com
January 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2021
