Virologs, viral mimicry, and virocell metabolism: the expanding scale of cellular functions encoded in the complex genomes of giant viruses

Mohammad Moniruzzaman, Maria Paula Erazo Garcia, Roxanna Farzad, Anh D. Ha, Abdeali Jivaji, Sangita Karki, Uri Sheyn, Joshua Stanton, Benjamin Minch, Danae Stephens, Dustin C. Hancks, Rodrigo A.L. Rodrigues, Jonatas S. Abrahao, Assaf Vardi, Frank O. Aylward*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The phylum Nucleocytoviricota includes the largest and most complex viruses known. These "giant viruses"have a long evolutionary history that dates back to the early diversification of eukaryotes, and over time they have evolved elaborate strategies for manipulating the physiology of their hosts during infection. One of the most captivating of these mechanisms involves the use of genes acquired from the host - referred to here as viral homologs or "virologs"- as a means of promoting viral propagation. The best-known examples of these are involved in mimicry, in which viral machinery "imitates"immunomodulatory elements in the vertebrate defense system. But recent findings have highlighted a vast and rapidly expanding array of other virologs that include many genes not typically found in viruses, such as those involved in translation, central carbon metabolism, cytoskeletal structure, nutrient transport, vesicular trafficking, and light harvesting. Unraveling the roles of virologs during infection as well as the evolutionary pathways through which complex functional repertoires are acquired by viruses are important frontiers at the forefront of giant virus research.

Original languageEnglish
Article numberfuad053
JournalFEMS Microbiology Reviews
Volume47
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 22 Sept 2023

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Medicine

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