Five Questions about Mycoviruses

Mycoviruses are viruses that infect fungi. The first mycovirus was reported in 1962 from the cultivated mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; the infected mushrooms developed malformed fruiting bodies, grew slowly, and matured early, resulting in serious yield losses Like viruses that infect animals and plants, mycoviruses require the living cells of other organisms to replicate. While sharing some characteristics with animal and plant viruses, mycoviruses also have the following unique characteristics: (1) most mycoviruses lack an extracellular route for infection; (2) mycoviruses are transmitted intercellularly only through cell division, sporulation, and cell fusion; and (3) mycoviruses apparently lack a movement protein, which is essential for the life cycle of animal and plant viruses.