Tissue culture and next-generation sequencing: A combined approach for detecting yam (Dioscorea spp.) viruses

Abstract

<i>In vitro</i> culture offers many advantages for yam germplasm conservation, propagation and international distribution. However, low virus titres in the generated tissues pose a challenge for reliable virus detection, which makes it difficult to ensure that planting material is virus-free. In this study, we evaluated next-generation sequencing (NGS) for virus detection following yam propagation using a robust tissue culture methodology. We detected and assembled the genomes of novel isolates of already characterised viral species of the genera <i>Badnavirus</i> and <i>Potyvirus</i>, confirming the utility of NGS in diagnosing yam viruses and contributing towards the safe distribution of germplasm.