<p>Some twenty years ago, the discovery of the first giant virus, Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus (now <i>mimivirus bradfordmassiliense</i> species), paved the way for the discovery of more than 10 new families of protist-infecting DNA viruses with unexpected diversity in virion shape and size, gene content, genome topology and mode of replication. Following their brief description, we examine how the historical concepts of virology have held up in the light of this new knowledge. Although the initial emphasis was on the gigantism of the newly described viruses infecting amoebae, the subsequent discovery of viruses with intermediate virion and genome sizes gradually re-established a continuum between the smallest and largest viruses within the phylum <i>Nucleocytoviricota</i>.</p>

错误:搜索内容不能为空,请输入英文关键词
错误:关键词超出字数限制,请精简
高级检索

20 years of research on giant viruses

  • Tressy Bosmon,
  • Chantal Abergel,
  • Jean-Michel Claverie

摘要

Some twenty years ago, the discovery of the first giant virus, Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus (now mimivirus bradfordmassiliense species), paved the way for the discovery of more than 10 new families of protist-infecting DNA viruses with unexpected diversity in virion shape and size, gene content, genome topology and mode of replication. Following their brief description, we examine how the historical concepts of virology have held up in the light of this new knowledge. Although the initial emphasis was on the gigantism of the newly described viruses infecting amoebae, the subsequent discovery of viruses with intermediate virion and genome sizes gradually re-established a continuum between the smallest and largest viruses within the phylum Nucleocytoviricota.