Grapevine viruses: Did you say more than a hundred?

Abstract

Grapevine virology is well rooted in history, with virus-like symptoms described in the literature as early as the 18th century, and the identification and characterization of viruses associated with viral diseases in the later half of the 20th century. At the dawn of the 21st century and the progressive advent of high-throughput sequencing methodologies followed by their rapid global adoption for virus discovery and annotation of the viral metagenome, the landscape of grapevine virology has rapidly changed. Consequently, the number of novel viruses identified in grapevines (Vitis spp.) has exponentially increased over the past decade and a half. High-throughput sequencing has also been elegantly used for revisiting the existence of a virus that had been allegedly associated with a grapevine disease to only empirically rule it out as a bona fide virus of the grapevine. As a result, the number of grapevine viruses sometimes dwindles, making their timely itemization essential for the community of virologists, as well as growers, extension educators, grapevine nurseries, diagnosticians, service providers, and regulators alike. Here, as of the preparation of this article, 102 viruses have been identified in grapevines worldwide. These viruses are exemplar isolates of species that belong to 44 genera in 21 virus families. The more than a hundred viruses solidifies the ranking of Vitis spp. as the cultivated crop hosting the most viruses.