Abstract
Phytoviruses are highly prevalent in plants worldwide, including vegetables and fruits. Humans, and more generally animals, are exposed daily to these viruses, among which several are extremely stable. It is currently accepted that a strict separation exists between plant and vertebrate viruses regarding their host range and pathogenicity, and plant viruses are believed to infect only plants. Accordingly, plant viruses are not considered to present potential pathogenicity to humans and other vertebrates. Notwithstanding these beliefs, there are many examples where phytoviruses circulate and propagate in insect vectors. Several issues are raised here that question if plant viruses might further cross the kingdom barrier to cause diseases in humans. Indeed, there is close relatedness between some plant and animal viruses, and almost identical gene repertoires. Moreover, plant viruses can be detected in non-human mammals and humans samples, and there are evidence of immune responses to plant viruses in invertebrates, non-human vertebrates and humans, and of the entry of plant viruses or their genomes into non-human mammal cells and bodies after experimental exposure. Overall, the question raised here is unresolved, and several data prompt the additional extensive study of the interactions between phytoviruses and non-human mammals and humans, and the potential of these viruses to cause diseases in humans.
Highlights
Plant viruses are highly prevalent in plants worldwide, including vegetables and fruits, and represent a serious threat to cultivated plants and agriculture production [1]
Mankind has likely been considerably exposed to plant viruses for several thousand years, and this supports the paradigm that these viruses are safe for humans
If a plant virus was to completely breakdown the host specificity border and become able to multiply in vertebrates, this multiplication could remain unnoticed if it is not associated with a specific symptomatology and could remain an evolutionary dead-end for the virus if there is no further transmission to vertebrates
Summary
Plant viruses are highly prevalent in plants worldwide, including vegetables and fruits, and represent a serious threat to cultivated plants and agriculture production [1]. In virology, interest has mainly been focused on viruses that cause diseases in humans and other vertebrates. Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), which causes mosaic disease in tobacco plants, is usually quoted as the first virus discovered. It is currently considered that phytoviruses only infect plants and plant viruses cannot cause disease in humans. We describe here that some plant and animal viruses are closely related; humans are considerably exposed to plant viruses; plant viruses can enter mammalian cells and bodies and be naturally present in mammals, including humans; and this presence may be non-neutral; plant viruses may trigger events in mammalian cells and elicit immune responses in invertebrates, non-human vertebrates and humans, and was recently associated with clinical symptoms
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