Primers designed for the detection of grapevine pathogens spreading with propagating material by quantitative real-time PCR

The use of healthy planting stock is a basic prerequisite to prevent spreading of several grapevine diseases including viroids, viruses, phytoplasmas, bacteria and fungi which systemically and frequently infect their host plant in latent form. To obtain pathogen-free plants several protocols have been developed which include various diagnostic methods that include biological, -serological and molecular assays to detect and identify, and curative treatments to eliminate the various pathogens (Bisztray et al. 2012, Szegedi et al. 2012). Due to its high sensitivity, cost efficiency and easy application the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has become the most widely used diagnostic protocol during the last 25 years in plant pathology (Louws et al. 1999). To increase the sensitivity, reliability and specificity of conventional PCR methods several novel technologies have been introduced into the plant quarantine studies during the recent years. In addition to increased sensitivity, most of these methods allow also the simultaneous detection of multiple pathogens. Novel molecular diagnostic techniques