Abstract
Serological and PCR techniques failed to detect Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) infecting stunted tomato plants exhibiting leaf curling, purpling and crumpling. In contrast, Mass Spectrometry rapidly identified peptides generated from a ~28kD protein cut from PAGE gels as TSWV N-protein within 5 days. The results indicate that the incidence of TSWV may be underestimated in the field.
Cocksfoot mild mosaic virus
(CMMV) was identified infecting
Bromus diandrus
using serological techniques. Peptides from a ~25kD protein failed to identify with any protein on GenBank until a CMMV sequence was published. The use of Mass Spectrometry as an adjunct for virus detection and identification is briefly discussed.