Early Sensing of Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus in Tomato Plants via Electrical Measurements

Viruses belonging to the Tobamovirus genus caused severe losses in many economically important crops, such as pepper, tomato, and cucurbits. Disease symptoms of the Tobamovirus tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) are visually detected about 10-14 days post-infection. During the 'latent' asymptomatic period, infected plants constitute a primary source for virus spread to the entire crop via workers' hands and tools. In the present study, we have built the infrastructure of an electrical sensor for the early detection of ToBRFV in tomatoes. We have uncovered the changes in the electrical characteristics of ToBRFV-infected tomato plants, and we have noticed that ~3 days post-infection the plants demonstrated changes in the I-V curve and a significant reduction of their electrical conductivity. This observation emphasizes that the impact of the ToBRFV on the electrical properties of infected tomato plants appears much earlier than the visible symptoms. Thus, this study paves the way toward a novel early detection approach of ToBRFV, which will reduce the primary infection source, minimize the secondary spread of the virus, improve yield quality, and minimize economic losses.