Research areas Plant viruses cause major disease epidemics in important food crops and are a major threat to food security in many countries particularly in the developing world. The predicted warming of the climate caused by environmental change is expected to increase the abundance and geographic range of many insects that spread viruses which in turn may increase the occurrence of virus diseases. Potato is the third largest food crop in the world. Scotland produces high quality seed tubers and approx. 70,000 tonnes are exported annually to the EU and over 30 other countries worldwide. Pests and diseases cause major economic losses by decreased tuber yield and quality and rejection of exports; our work contributes to supporting the seed potato industry.