A reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assay for detecting the pathogen of maize rough dwarf disease in China

Maize rough dwarf disease (MRDD) is one of the most serious viral diseases of maize in China. The object of this study is to develop a reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assay for rapid and sensitive detection of MRDD pathogen. Four RT-LAMP primers were designed on the basis of S10. Template RNA from infected leaves were used for RT-LAMP which were carried out under isothermal conditions at 61 °C for 90 min. RT-LAMP products were analyzed by electrophoresis in agarose gels or visual inspection of color change after staining with calcein. Sensitivity of the RT-LAMP assay was 100-fold higher than RT-PCR. This method can distinguish RBSDV from SRBSDV and the vectors carrying RBSDV from Rice stripe virus (RSV). The RT-LAMP assay shows excellent potential for application in the rapid and sensitive detection of MRDD pathogens in field samples or vector.