The Avsunviroidae are a family of viroids. There are five species in three genera (Avsunviroid, Elaviroid and Pelamoviroid). They consist of RNA genomes between 246 and 375 nucleotides in length. They are single-stranded covalent circles and have intramolecular base pairing. All members lack a central conserved region. ReplicationReplication occurs in the chloroplasts of plant cells. Key features of replication include no helper virus required and no proteins are encoded for.
