UDC 635.21: 631.53
https://doi.org/10.25630/PAV.2026.14.14.004
Malko A.M., Zhivykh A.V., Govorov D.N., Nikulin A.N., Meleshina O.V.
In modern agriculture, where high yields and product quality are key objectives, accurate and timely disease diagnosis is the paramount. This is especially relevant for such an important food crop as potatoes. Viral, bacterial, and fungal pathogens can cause colossal economic damage, reducing yields and degrading the marketability of tubers. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has become the most reliable tool for their detection today. Unlike enzyme immunoassay (ELISA), which detects antigen proteins, PCR finds the genetic material of the pathogen. This gives it a number of critical advantages: the highest sensitivity and accuracy, the method allows you to diagnose the disease at the earliest stages, often before the appearance of visible symptoms, as well as in covertly infected plants. In the Russian Federation, PCR technique is widely and effectively used by branches of the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Russian Agricultural Center». The range of detected pathogens covers the most dangerous potato viruses and bacteria. Research in 2025 identified 51 cases of infection. To combat this problem and obtain initially healthy seed material, micropropagation is used in modern seed production. The purpose of this publication is to provide an overview of the work being carried out by the Federal Scientific and Practical Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr» in the application of PCR analysis and micropropagation methods in potato quality assessment in the Russian Federation. According to the monitoring results, several hundred batches of seed and food potatoes were tested in 2025. The total mass of the analyzed tubers was almost 5 thousand tons. The number of evaluated plants (including in vitro micro plants and mini tubers) exceeded 9.5 million.
Key words: potato viruses, real-time PCR, diagnostics, micropropagation.
Malko A.M., D.Sci. (Agr.), Director of the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». E-mail: alexmalko@mail.ru. Tel.: +7 (495) 661-09-91
Zhivykh A.V., D.Sci. (Agr.), Deputy Director of the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». E-mail: av_zh@mail.ru. Tel.: +7 (495) 661-09-91
Govorov D.N., Cand. Sci. (Agr.), Deputy Director, Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». E-mail: dmitrii_govorov@mail.ru. Tel.: +7 (495) 661-09-91
Nikulin A.N., leading agronomist for plant protection, Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». E-mail: monitoring@rscagro.ru. Tel.: +7 (495) 661-09-91
Meleshina O.V., agronomist of the 2nd category of the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». E-mail: metodika@rscagro.ru. Tel.: +7 (495) 661-09-91
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PDF(Rus)
For citing: PCR analysis and micropropagation methods in Potato Quality Assessment the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Rosselkhoztsentr». A.M. Malko, A.V. Zhivykh, D.N. Govorov, A.N. Nikulin, O.V. Meleshina. Potato nad vegetables. 2026. No1. Pp. 34-36. https://doi.org/10.25630/PAV.2026.14.14.004 (In Russ.).
