Virus Diseases of Cereals

Abstract

A serious constraint to agricultural productivity and a constant pressure to global food security and hunger are infections of plants with viruses. Of particular concern is the impact of viruses and their vectors on cereals, wheat, maize (corn in the USA), rice, barley, sorghum, oats, millet and rye, which provide much of the world's food and drink. Because viral populations evolve quickly, the emergence of new variants of classic viruses with stronger virulence, the occurrence of viruses switching host from the wild species to the cultivated crops, or recombinants between different families, pose a serious challenge in the control of viruses and to the durability of widely deployed resistance against viruses. As there are essentially no chemical options to prevent viral infections, genetic resistance remains the most sustainable strategy for combating these major agricultural pests. Key Concepts Cereals are the most important component of the world's food supply. Intensification of crop production and introduction of vectors play key roles in the widespread of viruses in cereals. Most viruses of cereals are transmitted by hoppers, fungi like or aphids. Beetles and mites are responsible for the transmission of newly emerging viruses of cereals. With no chemical options to prevent viral infections, genetic resistance remains the most sustainable strategy. Recent threats in global food security are due to newly emerging viral diseases.

Aphid vectors of barley yellow dwarf (BYDV) virus in wheat crop in Paraguay

“…Durante todo el periodo del muestreo fueron capturadas cinco especies de áfidos que son considerados transmisoras del BYDV, Rhopalosiphum padi, Rhopalosiphum maidis, Sitobion avenae, Schizaphis además de otros cultivos de la familia Poaceae como, cebada, avena y ocasionalmente maíz (Miller & Rasochová, 1997;Gonzalez et al, 2015;Rakotondrafara, Byamukama & Plumb, 2017). La importancia económica de esta enfermedad radica en su amplia distribución a nivel mundial, frecuencia, y el daño que produce, destacándose también la alta diversidad de especies de áfidos capaces de transmitir.…”

High-Throughput Sequencing Application in the Diagnosis and Discovery of Plant-Infecting Viruses in Africa, A Decade Later

“…This discovery, which also marked the start of the discipline of plant virology, was made from various studies that pinpointed tobacco mosaic virus as the causal agent of a mosaic disease on tobacco plants [ 1 ]. Thenceforth, viruses have been identified in most plants including vegetables [ 2 , 3 ], legumes [ 4 , 5 ], cereals [ 6 , 7 ], fruit crops [ 8 ], ornamentals [ 9 ] and wild species [ 10 ] and constitute approximately one-third of plant disease-causing agents. Plant virus particles, frequently referred to as virions, vary in shapes and sizes.…”

Characterization of the Q.Ymym region on wheat chromosome 2D associated with wheat yellow mosaic virus resistance

“…The use of resistant varieties is the most effective and cost-saving management system for controlling soil-borne virus diseases of cereals (Chen, 2005;Kanyuka et al, 2003;Ordon et al, 2009;Rakotondrafara, Byamukama, & Plumb, 2017). Therefore, the most important issue in breeding is the identification of resistant materials.…”