Why plant viruses can not infect human?

Answer 1

Viruses are 'Host Specific'. That is , there exists a chemical

attraction between a viral capsid or the covering and the

host cell. If it matches only then viral particle gains entry in

that specific cell and begins the process of replication.

Otherwise there is no infection and the viral particle remains

inert.

It is some what like lock and key arrangement .

A particular key can open only a particular lock, otherwise it

is useless.

Another example is that of ' Specificity of Enzymes '.

In every living body a particular enzyme can act only on a

particular substrate, eventhough a lot many others are nearby.

Answer 2

Viral infection requires certain vectors. For example, cotton leaf curl viruses are transmitted in a number of plants (cotton, okra, althea, tomato, banana etc.) by aphids, whitefly. Viruse grow and multiply inside vectors as well as in plants. However, these viruses do not break immune system of vectors except in few cases where it becomes injurious to vectors also. Secondly, viral DNA of plant viruses do not completely control replication machinery of vectors (replication protein requires 9 base pair specific sequence in host cell DNA to completely control DNA polymerase, RNA polymerase, protein synthesis machinery). Thus, until unless any vector do not transfer viral particles in human they are unable to grow inside human to infect them. Secondly, for viral infection movement of viruses ocurr from cell to cell which reqired specific movement proteins. and this has been occur in plants through phloem. However, such system is absent in humans.

Overall, i would like to second the comment given earlier by some one that

Why computer virus did not affect plants

Habib

Answer 3

Our immune system can destroy them. There are only a few illnesses that can transfer from animals to humans. And no plant sickness that ive ever heard of. First of all plants are not even alive in the same way people and animals are. They have no brain, no blood, no internal organs or anything remotely close to us. They are a completely different live form

Answer 4

A virus is a snippet of RNA or DNA which is a set of genetic instructions which direct the infected cell to make copies of the virus. As such, instructions have to be specific to a particular kind of cell. Plant and animal cells are genetically and structurally quite different.

Answer 5

Viruses are often specific - only infecting a certain species.

Answer 6

And why do computer viruses don't affect plants?

Answer 7

Genetics, we don't taste good to them.