Characterization of Maize Streak Virus Isolates Using Monoclonal and Polyclonal Antibodies and by Transmission to a Few Hosts. M. Peterschmitt, Maize Program, Centre Coopération Internationale en Recherches Agronomiques pour le Développement, 34032 Montpellier Cedex, France. B. Reynaud, G. Sommermeyer, and P. Baudin. Maize Program, Centre Coopération Internationale en Recherches Agronomiques pour le Développement, 97487 Saint Denis Cedex, Réunion; Institut Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, 67084 Strasbourg Cedex, France; and Centre Coopération Internationale en Recherches Agronomiques pour le Développement, 34032 Montpellier Cedex, France. Plant Dis. 75:27-32. Accepted for publication 29 May 1990. This article is in the public domain and not copyrightable. It may be freely reprinted with customary crediting of the source. The American Phytopathological Society, 1991. DOI: 10.1094/PD-75-0027.

The pathogenic and serological properties of maize streak virus (MSV) were characterized by studying isolates from maize, sugarcane, and other Poaceae species in Réunion. Transmission tests of six isolates indicated they could be divided into two groups on the basis of their virulence. The isolates in the first group showed differences in the percentage of plants infected and the severity of symptoms and reacted with polyclonal antibodies prepared against an MSV isolate from maize. The second group contained one isolate from sugarcane that only reacted with the polyclonal antibodies after purification. With use of five monoclonal antibodies prepared against a maize isolate from Réunion, three distinct serotypes were identified from leaf samples collected in Africa and islands in the Indian Ocean. The maize isolates from 11 countries all belonged to the same serotype (SP). In contrast, sugarcane was the host for three serotypes (SP, 94, and 180). One monoclonal antibody reacted with the three serotypes and appears to be a useful tool for the diagnosis of all isolates of MSV.