Virology

The Virology Committee of the American Phytopathological Committee (APS) provides a forum for discussing issues in plant pathology that are important to plant virologists. The committee provides information to members on current issues in virology by sponsoring or co-sponsoring symposia, workshops, and discussion sessions at the annual meeting of the APS. The committee actively solicits external funding for the sessions and gratefully acknowledges sources. The committee supports the creation and preservation of plant virus collections and associated reagents, oligonucleotide sequences, etc., as a resource that will benefit all plant virologists. Through sponsorship of published information such as "Virus Diseases of Plants", an image database collection, and this web site, the committee provides virologists and other plant pathologists with written and visual information that is useful in research, extension, and teaching. A subcommittee of the Virology Committee works closely with USDA/APHIS to streamline the permit process for interstate shipment of virus cultures by annually updating the widely prevalent plant virus list. This list is also used to help identify geographic regions where plants containing viral transgenes can be field-tested. Through such activities, the Virology Committee actively serves the membership of the APS.