Development and validation of RT-PCR multiplex detection of grapevine viruses and viroids in the Czech Republic

A multiplex RT-PCR reaction was developed and validated for the simultaneous detection of two viruses and two viroids: grapevine fleck virus, grapevine Pinot gris virus, grapevine yellow speckle viroid 1, and hop stunt viroid. The multiplex reaction specificity was verified on a set of 210 grapevines from the Czech Republic. The results showed the occurrence of hop stunt viroid in 94.3% of the examined plants, while incidence of the other pathogens was lower: grapevine Pinot gris virus (64.8%), grapevine yellow speckle viroid 1 (52.4%), and grapevine fleck virus (15.2%).