Growth, Yield, and Quality of Pseudostellaria heterophylla Affected by Different Viruses Infecting Seed Roots

  Objective   Effects on the photosynthesis, tuber yield, and tuber quality of Pseudostellaria heterophylla plants induced by infecting viruses were examined.

  Methods  Identified by RT-PCR, virus-free P. heterophylla Zhenshen 2 plants and those infected by turnip mosaic virus (TMV) and/or broad bean wilt virus (BBWV) were propagated in the field in a random block experiment. Leaf photosynthesis as well as yield and quality of the medicinal roots of the plants were measured.

  Results  The total chlorophyll content, net photosynthetic rate, and height of the plants infected by both TMV and BBWV were 24%, 33%, and 26%, respectively, and the tuber yield, water-soluble extracts, and polysaccharides on a per unit area basis 77.5%, 76.2%, and 87.3%, respectively, lower than those of the virus-free counterparts. But no significant effects on any of those monitored properties were detected in the plants infected by BBWV alone.

  Conclusion   Unlike BBWV, TMV infection on P. heterophylla significantly reduced the photosynthesis, tuber yield, and tuber quality of the plants. Thus, it was imperative to avoid TMV contamination in handling P. heterophylla seedlings.