The family tree of viruses just grew, and it paves the way for a new approach to agricultural research

Researchers have discovered that a group of viruses known to infect an agriculturally important plant pathogen has remained genetically stable for an astonishing four decades.

The discovery of a disease-fighting virus that doesn't mutate at a rapid rate points the way toward new tools for fighting crop disease—and highlights how little is known about viruses that infect bacteria in agricultural settings.