Potato Virus Y (PVY) is a monopartite, single stranded RNA virus that infects mainly Solanaceous plants including, potato, tomato, pepper, tobacco and eggplant. There are multiple strains of the virus including the common strain, PVYO, which causes mosaic symptoms in most hosts.
Potato virus Y (PVY, type-member of the genus Potyvirus) is one of the most economically serious plant viruses. It is currently recognised as the most damaging potato virus in the world for seed and processed potatoes. PVY is transmitted by at least 70 aphid species in a non-persistent manner. Acquisition and inoculation periods are short (around one minute) and retention of the virus in the aphid vector usually lasts no more than 1 to 2 hours. PVY can infect a very wide range of cultivated and weed plant species, belonging mainly to the family Solanaceae (tomato, tobacco, pepper, etc.).