Use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to study transmission of banana bunchy top virus by the banana aphid (Pentalonia nigronervosa)

Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) is a ssDNA virus transmitted by the banana aphid, ( Pentalonia nigronervosa ). A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was used to study BBTV transmission efficiency, to determine the minimum acquisition-access period, the minimum inoculation-access period, the retention time, and to examine the possibility of transovarial transmission in this vector. BBTV was acquired by banana aphids within 4 h and was transmitted within 15 min feeding. On average, more than 65% of single viruliferous adult aphids transmitted BBTV. The aphids retained BBTV for their adulthood of 15–20 days. None of the 131 offspring from adult aphids reared on infected bananas were BBTV positive. Aphid transmission experiments were conducted to determine if taro and gingers are hosts of BBTV. None of the 87 taro and ginger plants exposed to aphid inoculation were infected by BBTV. The BBTV-free status of these plants was verified by PCR assay for 6 months post-inoculation. In addition, none of the taro and ginger samples collected from fields adjacent to BBTV-infected banana plants tested positive for BBTV.