One of the major aims in studying plant viruses is to minimise the development of symptoms in infected plants. With the advent of in vitro transcript mediated research on plant viruses, substantial progress has been made. This article describes the biology of a plant specific RNA virus, Johnsongrass mosaic virus (JGMV), important to Australian sorghum and corn agriculture and, in particular, at a molecular level which of the RNA sequences in its genome that make it possible for the virus to move from cell to cell, and eventually spread systemically throughout the entire plant. The JGMV has caused considerable yield losses in maize and sorghum over a number of years in Australia. Incidents where 100% of the crop has been infected are on record. The use of this virus is convenient under laboratory conditions because it can be readily transmitted by mechanical inoculation with infected leaf sap, which obviates the need for maintaining aphid colonies. The JGMV is a single stranded positive sense RNA virus.