Introduction to Plant Viruses Introduction to Plant Viruses Plant viruses attack only plants. They are harmless to all other organisms. Prevention is the only economic control for virus diseases. Viruses consist of a nucleic acid core and a protein coat.
Some plant viruses have a very limited host range and others attack numerous species.
Plant viruses can multiply only within living cells. Plant viruses usually multiply only within living plant cells, but some may be able to multiply within the bodies of aphids and nematodes. A given plant virus may be able to multiply only within the living cells of one species or genera of plants, but some can multiply within the cells of a wide group of plant families. I am not sure whether latent plant viruses exist. In general, most organisms harbor both virluent and and latent viruses.