In 2018, the family Arenaviridae was expanded by inclusion of 1 new genus and 5 novel species. At the same time, the recently established order Bunyavirales was expanded by 3 species. This article presents the updated taxonomy of the family Arenaviridae and the order Bunyavirales as now accepted by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) and summarizes additional taxonomic proposals that may affect the order in the near future.

The genus Crinivirus includes the whitefly-transmitted members of the family Closteroviridae. Whitefly-transmitted viruses have emerged as a major problem for world agriculture and are responsible for diseases that lead to losses measured in the billions of dollars annually. Criniviruses emerged as a major agricultural threat at the end of the twentieth century with the establishment and naturalization of their whitefly vectors, members of the genera Trialeurodes and Bemisia, in temperate climates around the globe. Several criniviruses cause significant diseases in single infections whereas others remain asymptomatic and only cause disease when found in mixed infections with other viruses. Characterization of the majority of criniviruses has been done in the last 20 years and this article provides a detailed review on the epidemiology of this important group of viruses.

Blackberry and raspberry are members of the family Rosaceae. They are classified in the genus Rubus, which comprises hundreds of species and has a center of origin in the Far East. Rubus is divided into 15 subgenera with blackberries classified in the Rubus (formerly Eubatus) and raspberries in the Idaeobatus subgenera. Rubus species are propagated vegetatively and are subject to infection by viruses during development, propagation, and fruit production stages. Reports of initial detection and symptoms of more than 30 viruses, virus-like diseases, and phytoplasmas affecting Rubus spp. were reviewed more than 20 years ago. Since the last review on Rubus viruses, significant progress has been made in the molecular characterization of many of the viruses that infect Rubus spp. Currently, reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction detection methods are available for most of the viruses known to infect Rubus. The goals of this article are to update the knowledge on previously characterized viruses of Rubus, highlight recently described viruses, review the virus-induced symptoms, describe the advances made in their detection, and discuss our knowledge about several virus complexes that cause serious diseases in Rubus. Virus complexes have been identified recently as the major cause of diseases in blackberries and raspberries.

Producers worldwide need access to the best plant varieties and cultivars available to be competitive in global markets. This often means moving plants across international borders as soon as they are available. At the same time, quarantine agencies are tasked with minimizing the risk of introducing exotic pests and pathogens along with imported plant material, with the goal to protect domestic agriculture and native fauna and flora. These two drivers, the movement of more plant material and reduced risk of pathogen introduction, are at odds. Improvements in large-scale or next-generation sequencing (NGS) and bioinformatics for data analysis have resulted in improved speed and accuracy of pathogen detection that could facilitate plant trade with reduced risk of pathogen movement. There are concerns to be addressed before NGS can replace existing tools used for pathogen detection in plant quarantine and certification programs. Here, we discuss the advantages and possible pitfalls of this technology for meeting the needs of plant quarantine and certification.

Blueberry and cranberry are fruit crops native to North America and they are well known for containing bioactive compounds that can benefit human health. Cultivation is expanding within North America and other parts of the world raising concern regarding distribution of existing viruses as well as the appearance of new viruses. Many of the known viruses of these crops are latent or asymptomatic in at least some cultivars. Diagnosis and detection procedures are often non-existent or unreliable. Whereas new viruses can move into cultivated fields from the wild, there is also the threat that devastating viruses can move into native stands of Vaccinium spp. or other native plants from cultivated fields. The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of blueberry and cranberry viruses, focusing not only on those that are new but also those that are emerging as serious threats for production in North America and around the world.