Fungal Viruses

Fungal viruses, or mycoviruses, are small, infectious agents that only infect fungi and other related organisms such as lichen and algae. They have a variety of shapes, such as rods, filaments, spheres, and discs, and can be either single-stranded or double-stranded. Fungal viruses are highly diverse and found in virtually every environment on Earth, from soils, water and the air, to crops, and even in the human body. They not only regulate the spread and growth of their fungal hosts, but can also affect their behavior, metabolism and gene expression. Additionally, fungiviruses are of major agricultural importance due to their potential to cause crop losses. Knowledge of fungiviral infections can help us to better control and manage fungal diseases, and could be used to develop new treatments.