Table of Contents

1. Introduction: A Short History of Virology 2. Virion Structure, Genome Organization and Taxonomy of Viruses 3. Replication and Expression Strategies of Viruses 4. Origins and Evolution of Viruses 5. Host Range, Host-Virus Interactions and Virus Transmission 6. Viruses as Pathogens: Plant Viruses 7. Viruses as Pathogens: Animal Viruses, with Emphasis on Human Viruses 8. Viruses as Pathogens: Animal Viruses Affecting Wild and Domesticated Species 9. Viruses of Prokaryotes, Protozoa, Fungi and Chromista 10. Host-Virus Interactions: Battles Between Viruses and Their Hosts 11. Beneficial Interactions with Viruses 12. Viruses as Tools of Biotechnology: Therapeutic Agents, Carriers of Therapeutic Agents and Genes, Nanomaterials, and More 13. Viruses as Targets for Biotechnology: Diagnosis and Detection, Transgenesis and Rnai- and CRISPR/Cas Engineered Resistance 14. Concluding Thoughts: It’s A Viral World

About the Author

Dr. Tennant received her PhD from Cornell University were she also completed her postdoc prior to returning to Jamaica as a Professor within the Life Sciences at The University of the West Indies. She has been a Visiting Scientist at Cornell University, US Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center, and Texas A&M and a visiting lecturer at the Universidad de Los Andes, Venezuela. She has edited or co-edited 6 books and contributed chapters to an additional 7 volumes. She has received numerous awards, including Principal’s Award for the Best Publication, Principal’s Award for the Most Outstanding Researcher, HKA Career Hall of Fame Award, and Faculty’s Award for Outstanding Achievement. Dr. Fermin completed his PhD at Cornell University and took positions at Cornell University and University of Hawaii and Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center before returning to Venezuela as a faculty member at Universidad de Los Andes. His research is within molecular biology and plant pathology with a focus on viral impacts. He has received the Regional Award in Exact and Natural Sciences and multiple Researcher’s Recognition awards for his work. He has authored or edited 12 monographs. Dr. Jerome Foster completed his PhD in Biochemistry at the University of the West indies, St. Augustine (2004). He pubished 14 articles on virology focusing on viruses in Trinidad and S. America.