Unveiling the viroporin arsenal in plant viruses: Implications for the future

Abstract

AU Viroporins: Pleaseconfirmthatallheadinglevelsarerepresentedcorrectly are small, hydrophobic viral proteins that modify cellular : membranes to form tiny pores for influx of ions and small molecules. Previously, viroporins were identified exclusively in vertebrate viruses. Recent studies have shown that both plant-infecting positive-sense single-stranded (+ss) and negative-sense single-stranded (-ss) RNA viruses also encode functional viroporins. These seminal discoveries not only advance our understanding of the distribution and evolution of viroporins, but also open up a new field of plant virus research.