Punya Nachappa, PhD runs a research program at Colorado State University that is focused on understanding the interactions between plants, pathogens, and insect vectors in crops, including hemp.  Her team recently published a paper that identified several different viruses in Colorado hemp samples, most notably Beet Curly Top Virus (BCTV), which is a pathogen known to infect several different plant species. in our conversation we discuss: 



The prevalence of BCTV in Colorado hemp How BCTV compares to Hop Latent Viroid The BCTV disease progression in hemp and cannabis plants The only known mode of transmission for BCTV, the beet leafhopperStrategies for preventing BCTV and keeping leafhoppers away Other viruses and viroids cannabis and hemp growers should be aware of 



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Additional Resources



First Insights Into the Virus and Viroid Communities in Hemp (Cannabis sativa) Virus Infection and Host Plant Suitability Affect Feeding Behaviors of Cannabis Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae), a Newly Described Vector of Potato Virus YWild Wild West: Emerging Viruses and Viroids of Hemp@NachappaPunya on TwitterThe Nachappa Lab​ at Colorado State University