New project

[karel_t]

Hi all,
For a new project about pleione virology I look for the viral material. The aim of our research will be to test a new technology with which we would be able to determine the type of virus more efficiently and cheaply than ELISA or PCR. The next aim is to build a summary of symptoms for individual viruses and determine the range of the viruses what can attack pleiones. The last result may be the degree of virus expansion in pleione culture. In total, we would like to test about 100 samples.

If you want to help us, you must send me photos of flower and leaf  of your oddly looking plant (picture must be in high quality) and in September the sample of the fresh leaf (about 5 cm long).
You also must write:
- your name, country and city,
- how long you grow the sent plant in your collection,
- the date from when you observe the symptoms,
- the name of the vendor and the name of the original nursery (if known).
You also must agree that all information may be published in the research results and in scientific bulletins.

Samples and information must be sent in September 2016. The results will be published in 2018.
Please let me know if you want to collaborate on this project.

Karel

[Danshi]

Hi Karel,

you're coming along just at the right time!

I'm currently growing about 25 Pleione species and varieties and would love to have some suspicious looking ones tested, so you can count me in on your project.

First pic is Zeus Weinstein, which I'm pretty sure is virused, so I grow it away from other orchids and check for sucking insects often.
I will provide a better pic when the flower has opened.

Second pic is Lucey. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but the petals become unevenly colored as the flowers age.
I'll also provide another picture when the discoloration becomes more evident.

Regards
Daniel

[karel_t]

Hi Daniel,
As I already wrote here for many times we can't say for certain if your plants are viral only by picture. If you are sure about your Zeus Weinstein, there is a big probability, that virus is spread through your collection.
I'm also well known as the sceptic who not believe in colour breakings from temperature etc., so, I would recommend you to put your Lucey into quarantine and tested it.
K.

[Danshi]

Thanks Karel,
I'll put Lucey in quarantine, too. Only a few meters away, but better than nothing.

I'm not entirely sure about the Zeus Weinstein, but I would bet on it to be virused.
Here are some pictures of the two aforementioned plants from last year, also a very blotchy barbarae.
All from the same seller, by the way.

Daniel

[Alex]

I would certainly agree that those plants are suspicious, Daniel.

Karel, have you ever tested plants with flowers looking like that and *not* found a virus? I know that existing methods do not have 100% sensitivity, so we can't conclude the plants are virus-free even if so, but still interested to know.

Cheers,

Alex

[karel_t]

Daniel, all of these your plants are the candidates for our work  .

Alex, I think, that I already wrote about it several years ago. Yes, we tested plants like this and in few cases we not found any virus. It is caused by imprecision of used methods. ELISA is a good method, but you must test each kind of virus separately, so firstly it is very expensive and secondly we haven't tests for all kinds of viruses. PCR is better, but the most expensive method on DNA base. EM (what we use most often) test just very small sample of leaf, so if the concentration of virus is small, we can't find it.
That's why we test the new method 

K.