Begomoviruses of soybean and their management

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is a member of the family Fabaceae. About 85% of the world's soybeans are processed annually into soybean meal and oil. This oil seed crop has been reported to be infected by a number of plant viruses, which cause huge losses to the farmers all over the world. These viruses not only reduce the yield of the crop but also the oil content. More than 111 viruses or their strains have been reported worldwide infecting soybean. Of these viruses, begomoviruses are the important ones. They cause several types of symptoms in the plants and are transmitted by white flies (Bemisia tabaci) in nature. These viruses can be identified by polymerase chain reaction using the purified viral DNA or total DNA from the virus infected plants. Several strains of geminivirus have been confirmed using sequencing as a powerful tool to establish the homology of the gene sequences. The management of geminiviruses is a problem. Development of resistant varieties and vector control are the main strategies. Marketing of soybean is also one of the important fields of concern so that the farmers could get the good amount for their produce.