Spatial scale break in ecological strategies for host use by plant viruses
Michael McLeish, Adrian Zamfir, Bisola Babalola, Miguel Ángel Mora, Aurora Fraile, Fernando García-Arenal · 2026
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Description
Michael McLeish and co-authors present a 2026 study of how plant viruses use their hosts at different scales of nature. A virus's host range, the set of plants it can infect, is expected to shape disease risk. The team combined gene sequencing with lab tests to track 18 virus species in single plants and across whole plant communities.
The effect of host range flipped with scale. Inside individual plants, links between a virus's range and its success looked weak and almost random. Across communities, the same trait predicted diversity patterns much better. The authors argue that different processes rule at each scale, so disease models that merge them will misjudge risk. Farm and ecosystem forecasts should treat each scale on its own terms.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Michael McLeish, Adrian Zamfir, Bisola Babalola, Miguel Ángel Mora, Aurora Fraile, Fernando García-Arenal |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 38 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |