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ABSTRACT

Animals and humans are exposed to plant viruses as they have mostly depended on plants for food since ancient times but it doesn’t harm them. Some plant viruses remain virulent even after processing and enter into the animal and human body. Some plant viruses induce an immune response in humans. Plant virus changes the behaviours of insects to some extent after it became viruliferous. Plant viruses are also detected in the faeces, sputum of humans and animals but their harmful nature is not clear. Recently, plant viruses are used as a carrier for the manufacturing of vaccines for the treatment of cancer, different infectious agents and autoimmune diseases in both humans and animals. It enhances drug loading and targeting efficiency. Plant virus nanoparticles are used for this due to their defined structure, reproducibility and non-infectious nature. There are very similarities between animal and plant viruses. Presently it is believed that plant viruses only infect plants and a strict border exists between plant and animal viruses for their host range and specificity. Hence, do not cause any disease in humans and animals rather it can be used for noble purposes like vaccine manufacturing and drug delivery. All in all, the answer to the question raised here is unsolved yet.

Keywords: Animal virus, plant virus-derived vaccine, plant virus nanoparticle, Virus, Virus specificity, Kingdom border

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9. Are Plant Viruses Harmful to Human Beings_compressed.pdf