A new website has been established that focuses on potato virus Y (PVY), found at http://www.potatovirus.com/.
In the past decade, Potato Virus Y (PVY) has re-emerged as a serious disease where seed potatoes are grown in the United States. The two major factors have contributed to this: 1) Widespread acceptance of potato varieties that express mild or no leaf mosaic symptoms of PVY infection, making detection of infected seed potatoes very difficul, and 2) Displacement of the ordinary PVY strain by necrotic strains and recombinant strains (genes from both strains), once thought to be excluded from the U.S.
On Potatovirus.com, visitors will learn about the project, the people involved in the project and why PVY is a major concern to the potato industry. This information will prove useful to all groups of people who need information about PVY, from potato growers, to scientists, to people working within the potato industry, to consumers of potatoes and potato products. The website includes photos of PVY symptoms, which can help in proper identification in the field.