USE OF POLYMERASE CHAIN-REACTION TO DETECT PATHOGENIC STRAINS OF AGROBACTERIUM

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a sensitive tool for the identification of specific regions of DNA present in small quantities, was used to detect the presence of T-DNA in 34 Agrobacterium strains from Vitis spp. Oligonucleotide primers, homologous to T-DNA regions from a wide and a narrow host range strain of Agrobacterium tumefaciens, were used to amplify portions of the T-DNA. In most cases the PCR results confirmed pathogenicity tests using detached leaves from Agrobacterium-free muscadine plants and DNA slot blot hybridization.