Taqman real-time quantitative PCR for identification of western flower thrip (Frankliniella occidentalis) for plant quarantine

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2009.1060

Biol Lett. 2010 August 23; 6(4): 555–557.

Published online 2010 February 3. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2009.1060

PMCID: PMC2936211

Taqman real-time quantitative PCR for identification of western flower thrip (Frankliniella occidentalis) for plant quarantine

K. S. Huang,¹^† S. E. Lee,²^† Y. Yeh,¹ G. S. Shen,¹ E. Mei,² and C. M. Chang²^*

¹Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Hsinchu Branch, 25 Hangchin North Road, Tao-Yuan 33758, Taiwan, Republic of China

²Research Center for Emerging Viral Infections, Department of Medical Biotechnology and Laboratory Science, Chang Gung University, Tao-Yuan, 333, Taiwan, Republic of China

^*Author for correspondence (Email: cmchang/at/mail.cgu.edu.tw).

^†These authors contributed equally to the study.

Received December 20, 2009; Accepted January 14, 2010.

Abstract

Western flower thrip (Frankliniella occidentalis) is a major global pest of agricultural products. It directly damages crops through feeding, oviposition activity or transmission of several plant viruses. We describe a Taqman real-time quantitative PCR detection system, which can rapidly identify F. occidentalis from thrips larvae to complement the traditional morphological identification. The data showed that our detection system targeted on the ribosomal RNA gene regions of F. occidentalis has high sensitivity and specificity. The rapid method can be used for on-site testing of samples at ports-of-entry in the future.

Keywords: Frankliniella occidentalis, real-time quantitative PCR, plant quarantine

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