Tomato spotted wilt virus (Orthotospovirus tomatomaculae), a cyclically occurring threat to crop production worldwide

Abstract

Orthotospovirus tomatomaculae, formerly tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV; family Tospoviridae), is one of the most economically important plant viruses worldwide, due in part to its wide host-plant range and global distribution. Since the first outbreaks in the first half of 1900, the TSWV infections have represented a serious threat for several crops, such as tomato, pepper, lettuce, potato, peanut and tobacco, in both open-field and greenhouse farming conditions. TSWV is transmitted in a persistent, propagative manner by thrips vectors belonging to the genera Frankliniella and Thrips. Besides the vector control, the use of resistant cultivars has been one of the most effective management strategies of TSWV disease, at least for tomato and pepper crops. However, the selection pressure has led to the emergence of novel resistance-breaking viral strains which are increasingly responsible for the re-emergence of TSWV outbreaks in several cropping areas. As type species of tospoviruses, TSWV has also been particularly well studied for understanding the structure of the different tospovirus proteins and their roles in replication, infection, thrips transmission and ecological processes. This review aims to consolidate the most recent advances in research on this virus and will form the basis of an updated version of the Association of Applied Biologists description of plant viruses for TSWV.