Targeted disruption of aphid transmission: a vision for the management of crop diseases caused by Luteoviridae members

Abstract

Viruses in the Luteoviridae cause plant diseases that are notoriously difficult to manage. Referred to as luteovirids, these single stranded, positive-sense RNA viruses are transmitted by aphids in a circulative, non-propagative manner. This review highlights new potential strategies to control luteovirid disease by blocking virus transmission by aphids. These include: first, interfering with aphid-virus interactions to inhibit virus acquisition by aphids, second, manipulating the host plant to block virus acquisition and inoculation, and third, rapid identification of efficient vector populations for the delivery of targeted control strategies. Translation of these methods to the field requires further advances in basic and translational research and the development of new tools to study the tritrophic interactions among plants, luteovirids, and aphids.