A novel coronavirus isolated from bats in China is unusual because the genome contains a gene from a virus in a completely different family, the Reoviridae (link to paper). The finding suggests that recombination occurred between a (+) strand RNA virus and a virus with a segmented, double-stranded RNA genome. The ...

The TWiVome reveal the first eukaryotic genes found in a bacteriophage of Wolbachia, and how DNA tumor virus oncogenes antagonize sensing of cytoplasmic DNA by the cell. You can find TWiV #412 at microbe.tv/twiv, or listen below. [powerpress url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/twiv/TWiV412.mp3"] Click arrow to play Download TWiV 412 (73 MB .mp3, 121 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, RSS, email Become ...

Oncogenes of DNA tumor viruses encode proteins that cause cells to divide incessantly, eventually leading to formation of a tumor. These oncoproteins have now been found to antagonize the innate immune response of the cell (link to paper). Most cells encountered by viruses are not dividing, and hence do not efficiently ...

The TWiVeroos examine a reverse spillover of Newcastle disease virus vaccines into wild birds, and identification of a protein cell receptor for murine noroviruses. You can find TWiV #411 at microbe.tv/twiv, or listen below. [powerpress url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/twiv/TWiV411.mp3"] Click arrow to play Download TWiV 411 (59 MB .mp3, 95 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV!

Wolbachia in an insect cell. Image credit: PLoS/Scott O'Neill. Viruses are tidily categorized into three groups according to the hosts they infect - bacteriophages, eukaryotic viruses, and archaeal viruses. Viruses do not infect hosts in another domain of life, and therefore lateral gene transfer is limited (giant DNA viruses might be ...