Survey of Banana bunchy top virus on non-cultivated bananas in West Java

Abstract

Banana is a horticulture crop originated from Southeast Asia. Therefore, the genetic diversity of bananas is presumably high in Indonesia. Banana bunchy top disease caused by Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) has been reported occurred in several regions in Indonesia, especially in the banana cultivation. A survey was conducted in April 2019 in West Java to make documentation on the types of bananas that grow unattended and to monitor BBTV infection. Banana cultivars with various types of genomes was found during the survey, i.e. "Mas", "Uli", and "Rejang"(type AA); "Ambon", "Muli", and "Urang"(type AAA); "Kapas"and "Raja"(type AAB). Besides, wild bananas were also found, i.e."Caukole"in Cianjur and "Tongka Langit"in Tasikmalaya with genome types AAw and T, respectively. Leaf samples from infected plants were collected and taken to the laboratory for detection of BBTV using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. Specific DNA band of BBTV around 240 bp was successfully amplified from all leaf samples using mRepF/mRepR specific primer pairs. The results of this survey indicated that BBTV has spread in the field and has the potential to be a source of disease inoculum if no immediate control efforts are made.