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The virus is acquired by the larval stages of thrips. Once
acquired, the thrips is capable of transmitting the virus for the remainder
of it's life. The adult thrips is the critical stage for transmitting the
virus between plants, since this winged stage is more mobile that the
wingless larval stage which tends to remain on the same plant upon which it
emerged.
Thrips feed upon plants by rupturing leaf epidermal cells and slurping up the contents with a mixture of their saliva. It is at this point that the virus, being released with their saliva, has the opportunity to enter damaged plant cells and infect the plant.
A systemically infected plant cannot be cured. Upon finding infected plant material the best course of action is to dispose of the plant as soon as possible. Once infected,
the plant can serve as a source to any other susceptible plant nearby.
To see some pages referring to the molecular aspects of the virus, please check the following resources:
http://nutrisci.wisc.edu/~tlg/
http://image.fs.uidaho.edu/vide/refs.htm
http://sacs.cpes.peachnet.edu/spotwilt
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