Tomato mosaic virus
(ToMV)

Tomato mosaic virus

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- classification: Tobamovirus, not classified in a family


The tomato ( mosaic virus Tomato mosaic virus , ToMV) is present on all continents. It is found more frequently than TMV on tomato and pepper. It is serious both in field cultivation and under shelter. While its incidence has greatly diminished with the spread of resistant tomato varieties, the recent marketing of new susceptible varieties has shown how ToMV is always ready to attack sensitive plant material.


ToMV was first reported on tomato in 1909, in the United States (Connecticut). Long considered a strain of TMV, it exhibits different properties (serology, viral genone sequence and host range), which has enabled it to be classified as a distinct species. Like TMV, ToMV has been the subject of much research.

Several strains of ToMV have been identified on tomato, first according to the symptoms they cause ( tomato aucuba mosaic, tomato enation mosaic, yellow ringspot, winter necrosis, etc.), subsequently classified according to their virulence. At least six pathotypes have been defined (see the “Protection methods” tab).

The virions of ToMV are morphologically identical to those of TMV (figure 1): they therefore appear in the form of rigid rods, measuring approximately 300 x 15 nanometers.

Figure 1