Introduction
Group: I (dsDNA viruses)
Family: Pandoraviridae Genus: Pandoravirus Species: P. salinus |
Pandoravirus salinus is currently the largest known virus, measuring about 1µm by .5µm, with 2,556 genes[18] and 2.5 million bp. For comparison, the flu consists of 7 genes, and HIV 9 genes[17][18]. Pandoravirus was discovered off the coast of Chile in 2013, and a smaller relative, Pandoravirus dulcis (1.9 million bp), was also found in a lake in Australia in the same year, unrecognized as resembling any previously known viruses[33]. Similar previously found viruses were often mistaken for bacteria, for example one found living in an amoeba that was living in a contact lens in 2008[17]. According to the discovering researchers, Pandoravirus are harmless to humans[18].
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Life Cycle & Evolution
Pandoravirus parasitizes and kills amoebae by the lytic cycle (see introduction). Based on the locations of the two found specimens, their habitat is most likely under water[18]. Amazingly only 7% of Pandoravirus' genes match any currently cataloged by biologists, which hints that its ancestors may have been very different from any known bacteria or archaea[17][18]. However, one study links Pandoravirus' to Phycodnaviruses, which infect algae[34].
References
[17]http://www.nature.com/news/giant-viruses-open-pandora-s-box-1.13410
[18]https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Pandoravirus_salinus
[33]Philippe, N., Legendre, M., Doutre, G., Couté, Y., Poirot, O., Lescot, M., & ... Abergel, C. (2013). Pandoraviruses: amoeba viruses with genomes up to 2.5 Mb reaching that of parasitic eukaryotes. Science (New York, N.Y.), 341(6143), 281-286. doi:10.1126/science.1239181
[34]Yutin, N., & Koonin, E. (2013). Pandoraviruses are highly derived phycodnaviruses. Biology Direct, 8(1), 2-17. doi:10.1186/1745-6150-8-25
[18]https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Pandoravirus_salinus
[33]Philippe, N., Legendre, M., Doutre, G., Couté, Y., Poirot, O., Lescot, M., & ... Abergel, C. (2013). Pandoraviruses: amoeba viruses with genomes up to 2.5 Mb reaching that of parasitic eukaryotes. Science (New York, N.Y.), 341(6143), 281-286. doi:10.1126/science.1239181
[34]Yutin, N., & Koonin, E. (2013). Pandoraviruses are highly derived phycodnaviruses. Biology Direct, 8(1), 2-17. doi:10.1186/1745-6150-8-25