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Frontiers in Immunology 2020In recent years, viruses similar to those that cause serious disease in humans and other mammals have been detected in apparently healthy bats. These include... (Review)
Review
In recent years, viruses similar to those that cause serious disease in humans and other mammals have been detected in apparently healthy bats. These include filoviruses, paramyxoviruses, and coronaviruses that cause severe diseases such as Ebola virus disease, Marburg haemorrhagic fever and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in humans. The evolution of flight in bats seem to have selected for a unique set of antiviral immune responses that control virus propagation, while limiting self-damaging inflammatory responses. Here, we summarize our current understanding of antiviral immune responses in bats and discuss their ability to co-exist with emerging viruses that cause serious disease in other mammals. We highlight how this knowledge may help us to predict viral spillovers into new hosts and discuss future directions for the field.
Topics: Adaptive Immunity; Animals; Chiroptera; DNA Viruses; Disease Reservoirs; Evolution, Molecular; Host Adaptation; Immune System; Immunity, Innate; Interferons; RNA Viruses; Viral Zoonoses
PubMed: 32117225
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00026 -
International Journal of Molecular... Nov 2023Herpesviruses are large DNA viruses that have long been used as powerful gene therapy tools. In recent years, the ability of herpesviruses to stimulate both innate and... (Review)
Review
Herpesviruses are large DNA viruses that have long been used as powerful gene therapy tools. In recent years, the ability of herpesviruses to stimulate both innate and adaptive immune responses has led to their transition to various applications as vaccine vectors. This vaccinology branch is growing at an unprecedented and accelerated rate. To date, human herpesvirus-based vectors have been used in vaccines to combat a variety of infectious agents, including the Ebola virus, foot and mouth disease virus, and human immunodeficiency viruses. Additionally, these vectors are being tested as potential vaccines for cancer-associated antigens. Thanks to advances in recombinant DNA technology, immunology, and genomics, numerous steps in vaccine development have been greatly improved. A better understanding of herpesvirus biology and the interactions between these viruses and the host cells will undoubtedly foster the use of herpesvirus-based vaccine vectors in clinical settings. To overcome the existing drawbacks of these vectors, ongoing research is needed to further advance our knowledge of herpesvirus biology and to develop safer and more effective vaccine vectors. Advanced molecular virology and cell biology techniques must be used to better understand the mechanisms by which herpesviruses manipulate host cells and how viral gene expression is regulated during infection. In this review, we cover the underlying molecular structure of herpesviruses and the strategies used to engineer their genomes to optimize capacity and efficacy as vaccine vectors. Also, we assess the available data on the successful application of herpesvirus-based vaccines for combating diseases such as viral infections and the potential drawbacks and alternative approaches to surmount them.
Topics: Humans; Herpesviridae; Simplexvirus; Virus Diseases; Viral Vaccines; Genetic Vectors
PubMed: 38003300
DOI: 10.3390/ijms242216112 -
Journal of Virological Methods Oct 2023The ability of viral metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing (mNGS) to unbiasedly detect nucleic acids in a clinical sample is a powerful tool for advanced diagnosis of...
The ability of viral metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing (mNGS) to unbiasedly detect nucleic acids in a clinical sample is a powerful tool for advanced diagnosis of viral infections. When clinical symptoms do not provide a clear differential diagnosis, extensive laboratory testing with virus-specific PCR and serology can be replaced by a single viral mNGS analysis. However, widespread diagnostic use of viral mNGS is thus far limited by long sample-to-result times, as most protocols rely on Illumina sequencing, which provides high and accurate sequencing output but is time-consuming and expensive. Here, we describe the development of an mNGS protocol based on the more cost-effective Nanopore Flongle sequencing with decreased turnaround time and lower, yet sufficient sequencing output to provide sensitive virus detection. Sample preparation (6 h) and sequencing (2 h) times are substantially reduced compared to Illumina mNGS and allow detection of DNA/RNA viruses at low input (up to 33-38 cycle threshold of specific qPCR). Although Flongles yield lower sequencing output, direct comparison with Illumina mNGS on diverse clinical samples showed similar results. Collectively, the novel Nanopore mNGS approach is specifically tailored for use in clinical diagnostics and provides a rapid and cost-effective mNGS strategy for individual testing of severe cases.
Topics: Humans; Metagenomics; Nanopores; Virus Diseases; Viruses; RNA Viruses; DNA Viruses; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Sensitivity and Specificity
PubMed: 37516367
DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2023.114784 -
Journal of Molecular Evolution Jan 2020Viruses have been infecting their host cells since the dawn of life, and this extremely long-term coevolution gave rise to some surprising consequences for the entire... (Review)
Review
Viruses have been infecting their host cells since the dawn of life, and this extremely long-term coevolution gave rise to some surprising consequences for the entire tree of life. It is hypothesised that viruses might have contributed to the formation of the first cellular life form, or that even the eukaryotic cell nucleus originates from an infection by a coated virus. The continuous struggle between viruses and their hosts to maintain at least a constant fitness level led to the development of an unceasing arms race, where weapons are often shuttled between the participants. In this literature review we try to give a short insight into some general consequences or traits of virus-host coevolution, and after this we zoom in to the viral clades of adenoviruses, herpesviruses, nucleo-cytoplasmic large DNA viruses, polyomaviruses and, finally, circoviruses.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Animals; Biological Evolution; DNA Viruses; Evolution, Molecular; Host Microbial Interactions; Humans; Viruses
PubMed: 31599342
DOI: 10.1007/s00239-019-09913-4 -
The Journal of General Virology Jul 2021Members of the family have linear dsDNA genomes of 27 to 29 kbp and are the first viruses known to infect mesophilic ammonia-oxidizing archaea of the phylum...
Members of the family have linear dsDNA genomes of 27 to 29 kbp and are the first viruses known to infect mesophilic ammonia-oxidizing archaea of the phylum Thaumarchaeota. The spindle-shaped virions of Nitrosopumilus spindle-shaped virus 1 possess short tails at one pole and measure 64±3 nm in diameter and 112±6 nm in length. This morphology is similar to that of members of the families and . Virus replication is not lytic but leads to growth inhibition of the host. This is a summary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) Report on the family which is available at ictv.global/report/thaspiviridae.
Topics: Archaea; Archaeal Viruses; DNA Viruses; Genome, Viral; Host Specificity; Virion; Virus Replication
PubMed: 34328827
DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001631 -
Viruses Nov 2020Giant viruses are a group of eukaryotic double-stranded DNA viruses with large virion and genome size that challenged the traditional view of virus. Newly isolated... (Review)
Review
Giant viruses are a group of eukaryotic double-stranded DNA viruses with large virion and genome size that challenged the traditional view of virus. Newly isolated strains and sequenced genomes in the last two decades have substantially advanced our knowledge of their host diversity, gene functions, and evolutionary history. Giant viruses are now known to infect hosts from all major supergroups in the eukaryotic tree of life, which predominantly comprises microbial organisms. The seven well-recognized viral clades (taxonomic families) have drastically different host range. and , both with notable intrafamilial genome variation and high abundance in environmental samples, have members that infect the most diverse eukaryotic lineages. Laboratory experiments and comparative genomics have shed light on the unprecedented functional potential of giant viruses, encoding proteins for genetic information flow, energy metabolism, synthesis of biomolecules, membrane transport, and sensing that allow for sophisticated control of intracellular conditions and cell-environment interactions. Evolutionary genomics can illuminate how current and past hosts shape viral gene repertoires, although it becomes more obscure with divergent sequences and deep phylogenies. Continued works to characterize giant viruses from marine and other environments will further contribute to our understanding of their host range, coding potential, and virus-host coevolution.
Topics: Animals; Eukaryota; Evolution, Molecular; Genome Size; Genome, Viral; Genomics; Giant Viruses; Host Specificity; Humans; Phylogeny
PubMed: 33233432
DOI: 10.3390/v12111337 -
Viruses Oct 2020Curcumin, the primary curcuminoid compound found in turmeric spice, has shown broad activity as an antimicrobial agent, limiting the replication of many different fungi,... (Review)
Review
Curcumin, the primary curcuminoid compound found in turmeric spice, has shown broad activity as an antimicrobial agent, limiting the replication of many different fungi, bacteria and viruses. In this review, we summarize recent studies supporting the development of curcumin and its derivatives as broad-spectrum antiviral agents.
Topics: Animals; Antiviral Agents; Curcuma; Curcumin; DNA Viruses; Humans; Mice; RNA Viruses; Virus Diseases
PubMed: 33142686
DOI: 10.3390/v12111242 -
International Journal of Molecular... Jul 2019The extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) comprise a particular branch of the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades (MAPK) that transmits extracellular... (Review)
Review
The extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) comprise a particular branch of the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades (MAPK) that transmits extracellular signals into the intracellular environment to trigger cellular growth responses. Similar to other MAPK cascades, the MAPK-ERK pathway signals through three core kinases-Raf, MAPK/ERK kinase (MEK), and ERK-which drive the signaling mechanisms responsible for the induction of cellular responses from extracellular stimuli including differentiation, proliferation, and cellular survival. However, pathogens like DNA viruses alter MAPK-ERK signaling in order to access DNA replication machineries, induce a proliferative state in the cell, or even prevent cell death mechanisms in response to pathogen recognition. Differential utilization of this pathway by multiple DNA viruses highlights the dynamic nature of the MAPK-ERK pathway within the cell and the importance of its function in regulating a wide variety of cellular fates that ultimately influence viral infection and, in some cases, result in tumorigenesis.
Topics: DNA Virus Infections; DNA Viruses; Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Humans; MAP Kinase Signaling System; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; Protein Binding
PubMed: 31336840
DOI: 10.3390/ijms20143427 -
Viruses May 2022Viruses are an abundant component of aquatic systems, but their detection and quantification remain a challenge. Virophages co-replicate with giant viruses in the shared...
Viruses are an abundant component of aquatic systems, but their detection and quantification remain a challenge. Virophages co-replicate with giant viruses in the shared host cell, and can inhibit the production of new giant virus particles, thereby increasing the survival of the infected host population. Here, we present a protocol for Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) to quantify simultaneously giant virus and virophage in a mixed sample, enabling the rapid, culture-free and high throughput detection of virus and virophage. As virophage can be present as free virus particles or integrated into the virus host's genome as well as associated with organic particles, we developed a simple method that enables discrimination between free and particle-associated virophages. The latter include aggregated virophage particles as well as virophage integrated into the host genome. We used, for our experiments, a host-virus-virophage system consisting of , CroV and mavirus. Our results show that ddPCR can be an efficient method to quantify virus and virophage, and we discuss potential applications of the method for studying ecological and evolutionary processes of virus and virophages.
Topics: DNA Viruses; Genome, Viral; Giant Viruses; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Virophages
PubMed: 35632796
DOI: 10.3390/v14051056 -
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology May 2021Certain large DNA viruses, including those in the Marseilleviridae family, encode histones. Here we show that fused histone pairs Hβ-Hα and Hδ-Hγ from Marseillevirus...
Certain large DNA viruses, including those in the Marseilleviridae family, encode histones. Here we show that fused histone pairs Hβ-Hα and Hδ-Hγ from Marseillevirus are structurally analogous to the eukaryotic histone pairs H2B-H2A and H4-H3. These viral histones form 'forced' heterodimers, and a heterotetramer of four such heterodimers assembles DNA to form structures virtually identical to canonical eukaryotic nucleosomes.
Topics: DNA; DNA Viruses; Histones; Nucleosomes; Protein Binding; Protein Structural Elements; Protein Structure, Tertiary
PubMed: 33927388
DOI: 10.1038/s41594-021-00585-7