Q.Fill in the blank: The genetic material of a plant virus is mostly __________.

The protective protein covering around a virus's genetic material is termed the capsid.

A virus particle consists of genetic material (DNA or RNA) enclosed within a protein coat called the capsid, which is made up of small subunits called capsomeres. Together, the nucleic acid and its capsid are sometimes called the nucleoprotein or nucleocapsid, while the complete, infectious virus particle (which in some viruses also has an outer lipid membrane/envelope derived from the host cell) is called a v …

Most plant viruses carry RNA, not DNA, as their genetic material - this is one of the defining features distinguishing plant viruses from most animal/bacterial viruses.

Viruses are obligate intracellular parasites that are non-cellular, consisting of genetic material enclosed in a protein coat (capsid). Their genome can be DNA or RNA, single-stranded or double-stranded, depending on the type of virus. The great majority of viruses that infect plants - the classic example being the rod-shaped Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV), the first virus ever discovered/crystallised - have a single-stranded RNA genome. This is why, in gen …