• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
• /
• v.6 no.1
• /
• pp.27-31
• /
• 2003

Infectious flacherie of silkworm Bombyx mori is caused by B. mori infectious flacherie virus (BmIFV) and causes severe crop loss to sericulturists. In the present study, a colloidal textile dye-based dipstick immunoassay is developed for the detection of infectious flacherie in silkworms. Colloidal textile dye (blue D2R) with Aλ$_{max}$ at 620 nm was sensitised with 500 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml of purified anti-BmIFV IgG. The dye-antibody reagent detects purified antigen up to 10 ng/ml and BmIFV infection in diseased larval extracts $(up to a dilution of {10^-5})$ and faecal matter extracts $(up to a dilution of {10^-2})$ by forming clear blue dot within 30 min. It was observed to be stable for three months period at $4^{\circ}C$. The efficacy of textile dye-based dipstick immunoassay was on pay with HRP-based dipstick immunoassay and fluorescent antibody test, and better than latex agglutination and ouchterlony tests in the detection of BmIFV The dye-based dipstick immunoassay method provides a simple, sensitive and less expensive test for the detection of BmIFV infection in silkworms.s.