Plant viruses – Friend or Foe?

VANMEURSA — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 00:15:13 +0000

The 9th Australasian Plant Virology Workshop (APVW) titled Plant viruses – friend or foe? was held in Melbourne from 16-19 October 2010. The APVW showcased the importance of virus and virus-like organisms to agriculture and highlighted the challenges ahead with respect to disease control.

Victorian Department of Primary Industries’ scientists Linda Zheng, Fiona Constable and Brendan Rodoni were the convenors of the workshop. The bi-annual workshop sponsored by the CRCNPB was attended by 86 participants from 10 countries including: Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, USA, Canada, Thailand, India and Japan. 55 oral presentations and 20 posters reported research activities over the four day workshop relating to:

plant virus ecology and diversity
new and emerging viruses;
virus-like organisms
plant virus diversity and detection
new tools and technologies
plant host-virus interactions, and
plant virus epidemiology and climate change.

Results from a number of CRCNPB related projects were presented during the workshop through five oral and one poster presentations.

Dr Ko Verhoeven from the Plant Protection Service, Wageningen, The Netherlands, attended the workshop and presented a keynote address on pospoviroids titled: Identification and epidemiology of pospiviroids. Ko is a world expert on the detection and characterisation of PSTVd and related pospoviroids that infect solanaceous hosts. CRC PhD candidate Alison Mackie (UWA/DAFWA) presented a poster entitled Retention time of infectious Potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) on common surfaces” as part of her project on PSTVd. Potential collaboration between the CRCNPB and Dutch research groups on PSTVd were discussed.

The Richard Ellis Ford Matthews lecture titled Expanding concepts of plant viruses was presented by Professor Ulrich Melcher (Oklahoma State University) and introduced the concepts of plant virus ecology to the conference participants. Plant viruses are generally regarded as highly undesirable pathogens of plants. However this dogma is a very narrow and prejudiced view of plant-associated viruses. Next generation sequencing strategies are identifying viruses in abundance in natural systems. Analysis of sequence data suggests that these viruses are ancient parts of ecosystems and have not evolved as pathogens. This presentation highlighted the significant, yet subtle role plant viruses play in natural plant ecosystems.

Article written by: Brendan Rodoni

CRC40050: Post Entry Quarantine (phase one)

VANMEURSA — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:46:02 +0000

Program

Impact Management

CRC for Plant Biosecurity - Rodoni

Plant viruses – Friend or Foe?

CRC40050: Post Entry Quarantine (phase one)

Program