Research Projects

Viroids are 50-80 times shorter than the viral genome with relatively low molecular weight (1.3×105). They are the most fascinating class of autonomously replicating infectious agents. Till date, around 32-33 known viroid species have been identified, affecting various agricultural, horticultural and cash crops like hop and mulberry. Systemic infection is established through movement of cells and organs, and the symptoms brought on by viroids are similar to those of viral infections in higher plants. Numerous quick and accurate molecular diagnostic techniques, such as polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, hybridization, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, real-time RT-PCR, and conventional bioassay techniques, have identified specific viroid-infected crops. Concerning the Indian scenario, the occurrence of a few viroid diseases on economically important crop plants have been previously systematically studied in the country. Nowadays, mulberry plants are found to be infected with viroids, especially HSVd. In India, research on mulberry-associated viroids has not been initiated. Since mulberry is an important deciduous woody cash crop grown in India for its leaves to feed the silkworms. It is important to screen the presence of viroids. In addition to mulberry trees, exploring a significant number of mulberry germplasm is also very important to evaluate associated viroids as they may act as new sources of viroid infection. In view of this, the present research proposal entitled "Molecular Screening of Elite Mulberry Germplasm for Viroid Infection in India" is proposed for the financial assistance to investigate the occurrence and diversity of mulberry-associated viroids (small RNA's) in different ecological conditions in India and to develop molecular-based diagnostic methods for early detection of viroids (small RNA's).