RNA Virus - Science topic

A positive-sense single-stranded RNA mycovirus was isolated from Morchella sextelata strain ZY-1 and designated as “Morchella sextelata endornavirus 1” (MsEV1). The complete genome of MsEV1 was found to be 16,589 nucleotides (nt) in length and to contain a single large open reading frame (ORF) encoding the viral proteins PRK00409, transmethylase, D...

Despite the application of control measures, mosquito-borne diseases continue to pose a serious threat to human health. In this context, exploiting Wolbachia, a common symbiotic bacterium in insects, may offer effective solutions to suppress vectors or reduce their competence in transmitting several arboviruses. Many Wolbachia strains can induce co...

Coronaviruses are known to evolve rapidly and be prone to new virus emergence. Human coronavirus-229E is one of the seven coronaviruses currently known to cause respiratory symptoms in humans. Genomic data are very scarce for this virus. Here, we implemented an in-house multiplex PCR strategy to amplify HCoV-229E genomes from nasopharyngeal samples...

Dengue is a vector-borne viral disease caused by the flavivirus dengue virus (DENV) that continue to circulate worldwide. A positive-stranded enveloped RNA virus (DENV) is principally transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. It has four antigenically distinct serotypes, DENV-1 to DENV-4. This review highlights pathophysiology and clinical signs of Dengue V...

Orthobunyaviruses are a diverse group of segmented RNA viruses with significant but underexplored public and veterinary health implications. This study provides a genomic, phylogenetic, and ecological analysis of neglected Orthobunyaviruses using next-generation sequencing and computational predictions. We identified unique phylogenetic relationshi...

Background Coronavirus is a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Coronavirus related to the RNA virus is mainly transmitted through droplet nuclei from infected persons cough, sneeze, etc. It aims to...

Persistent viral infections have been assumed to have minimal fitness costs for insects. Using Drosophila melanogaster , we established persistent mono-infections with four different enteric RNA viruses (Drosophila A virus, Drosophila C virus, Bloomfield virus, and Nora virus) and observed that these infections significantly reduce fly survival, al...

Innate immune sensors must finely distinguish pathogens from the host to mount a response only during infection. RIG-I is cytoplasmic sensor that surveils for foreign RNAs. When activated, RIG-I triggers a broad antiviral response that is a major regulator of RNA virus infection. Here were show that RIG-I not only bound viral RNAs, but was activate...

Viruses are wonderful parasites that replicate and propagate within their host systems. Due to their host relationship, structural properties, and genomic structure decision, they can replicate in different organisms. The virus replication cycle involves steps like attachment, penetration, uncoating, genome replication, transcription, translation,...

Ash shoestring-associated virus (ASaV; Emaravirus fraxini) is a five-segmented, negative-sense RNA virus associated with chlorosis and leaf deformation in Fraxinus species. This study investigated the genetic diversity and evolutionary dynamics of ASaV by analyzing nearly full-length RNA2-RNA5 and partial RNA1 sequences from isolates collected from...

The complete genome sequence of fig leaf mottle-associated virus 2 (FLMaV2), a positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus with a genome length of 16,925 nucleotides, was determined via RT-PCR and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). Its genome organization resembles those of little cherry virus 2 (LChV2) and yam asymptomatic virus 1 (YaV1), both...

Objectives: SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus belonging to the Betacoronavirus genus. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between COVID-19 severity and NF-κB1 -94 ins/del (rs28362491), NF-κB1A 3’UTR A/G (rs696), -826 C/T (rs2233406) polymorphisms. Materials and Methods: We investigated the frequencie...

Nirmatrelvir, the active compound of the drug Paxlovid, inhibits the Main protease of SARS-CoV-2 (MPro, 3CLPro, NSP5). Its therapeutic application reduces but does not abolish the progression of COVID-19 in humans. Here we report a strong synergy of Nirmatrelvir with inhibitors of the ER chaperone GRP78 (HSPA5, BiP). Combining Nirmatrelvir with the...

Nonsense‐mediated mRNA decay (NMD) is a critical RNA quality control system in eukaryotes, also playing a role in defending against viral infections. However, research has primarily focused on nonsegmented viruses. To investigate the interaction between NMD and segmented RNA viruses, we used cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), which possesses a tripartite...

RNA viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, Influenza A Virus (IAV), Zika Virus, and Dengue Virus (DENV) pose serious global health challenges by manipulating host cellular mechanisms. SARS-COV-2, in particular exploits host translational machinery to enhance replication and evade immune response. Here, we investigated how SARS-CoV-2 circumvents host immune...

Alphaviruses are mosquito-borne RNA viruses that pose a significant public health threat, with no FDA-approved antiviral therapeutics available. The non-structural protein 2 helicase (nsP2hel) is an enzyme involved in unwinding dsRNA essential for alphavirus replication. This study reports the discovery and optimization of first-in-class oxaspiropi...

In urbanized environments, the expansion of urban areas has led to the creation of fragmented green spaces such as gardens and parks. While these areas provide essential habitats for pollinators, they may also inadvertently concentrate specimens of different species, increasing opportunities for pathogen transmission. This study highlights the impo...

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) is a recently identified tick-borne virus that has emerged in the twenty-first century. Its primary clinical manifestations include fever and thrombocytopenia, and its high morbidity and mortality rates have garnered significant attention. It is crucial to have a comprehensive understanding...

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is a widely used molecular biology technique that enables the amplification of specific DNA sequences. It is essential in genetic research, medical diagnostics, forensic science, and biotechnology. PCR works by replicating targeted DNA sequences through cycles of denaturation, annealing, and extension, allowing for t...

Nipah virus (NiV) is a non-segmented negative-strand RNA virus (nsNSV) with high pandemic potential, as it frequently causes zoonotic outbreaks and can be transmitted from human to human. Its RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) complex, consisting of the L and P proteins, carries out viral genome replication and transcription and is therefore an at...

Background Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease caused by an intracellular protozoan, Leishmania. Various factors, including host immunity and the Leishmania species, influence the manifestation and severity of the disease. Recent investigations have shed light on the potentially significant role of Leishmania RNA virus (LRV) in the clinical progno...

The rapid growth in the number of newly identified DNA and RNA viral sequences underscores the need for an accurate and comprehensive classification system for all viral realms at different taxonomic levels. Here, we establish the Viral Taxonomic Assignment Pipeline (VITAP), which addresses classification challenges by integrating alignment-based t...

Ebola virus disease (EVD) is an acute illness with a high-case fatality rate (CFR) caused by an RNA virus belonging to the Filoviridae family. Over the past 50 years, regular EVD outbreaks have been reported. The West African EVD outbreak of 2013–2016 proved to be significantly more widespread and complex than previous ones, resulting in approximat...

Autophagy can defend against infection by delivering viruses to lysosomes for degradation. Semliki Forest virus (SFV) is a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus of the alphavirus genus which has been used extensively as a model for arbovirus infection and neuronal encephalitis. Here, we show that autophagy is suppressed during the early hours o...

Effective methods for simultaneously measuring viral, bacterial, protozoan, and fungal pathogens in wastewater are needed. Here, we investigate how sample type and nucleic acid extraction protocols affect broad-range pathogen detection. We compared methods for analyzing wastewater solids and whole influent by dPCR detection of spiked and endogenous...

Viruses are diverse biological entities found virtually in all environments on Earth. Their association with parasitic protozoans was shown in the late 1980’s, followed by evidence that these viruses can influence the treatment of infections as well as influence parasite virulence. Recently, Matryoshka RNA viruses (MaRNAV) were discovered in Plasmo...

The development of innovative antiviral strategies is critical to address the global health threats posed by RNA viruses, including the Zika virus (ZIKV), which can cause severe neurological complications. The lipid transporter Oxysterol Binding Protein (OSBP), essential for cholesterol and phosphatidylinositol 4‐phosphate trafficking, is exploited...

Wolbachia pipientis is an α-proteobacterium, which is a widespread intracellular symbiont in a number of Arthropoda and some Nematoda species. With insects, W. pipientis forms a symbiont-host system characterized by very close interactions between its components. The mutual effects of Wolbachia on the host and the host on Wolbachia are important bi...

The pathophysiology of viral diseases is complex, and often evokes strong inflammatory responses and tissue damage. Currently available in vitro models mainly recapitulate the viral life cycle per se, but fail to model immune cell-mediated pathogenesis. Here we build macrophage-augmented organoids (MaugOs) by integrating macrophages into organoids...

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a pre-existing negative sense RNA virus of the family Paramyxoviridae, manifesting lower respiratory tract infections in children and adults above the age of 65 years. It replicates in a gradient manner similar to other paramyxovirus and spreads through droplets (released during cough or sneeze) or direct contact wit...

Recombination plays a central role in the evolution of the RNA virus genome, as it allows the exchange of genetic material between different viral lineages. Reassortment is a form of recombination specific to viruses with segmented genomes that involves the exchange of entire segments between lineages. This process has played a significant role in...

Introduction Swine acute diarrhea syndrome coronavirus (SADS-CoV) is an enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that causes clinical symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea in 10-day-old piglets. SADS-CoV has caused significant economic losses in the swine industry in southern China. Currently, no effective treatments or vaccines are av...

Viral hemorrhagic Lassa fever (LF), caused by Lassa virus (LASV), is a significant public health concern endemic in West Africa with high morbidity and mortality rates, limited treatment options, and potential for international spread. Despite advances in interrogating its epidemiology and clinical manifestations, the molecular mechanisms driving p...

The present paper addresses topics from various fields of biology. Its purpose is to enlarge the understanding of the usage of bioinformatics tools in the phylogenetic analysis of RNA viruses. The paper highlights the benefits of using information technology in virology, bringing the scientific community closer to unraveling the mysteries of RNA vi...

Despite effective HIV suppression, neuroinflammation and neurocognitive issues are prevalent in people with HIV (PWH) yet poorly understood. HIV infection alters the human virome, and virome perturbations have been linked to neurocognitive issues in people without HIV. Once thought to be sterile, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) hosts a recently disco...

Background The emergence of tick-borne pathogens poses a serious threat to both human and animal health. There remains controversy about virome diversity in relation to tick genus and ecogeographical factors. Results We conducted the meta‑transcriptomic sequencing of 155 pools of ticks encompassing 7 species of 3 genera collected from diverse geog...

Reverse genetics systems for influenza C virus encounter challenges due to the inefficient production of infectious virus particles. In the present study, we explored the underlying cause by assessing the efficiency of generating influenza C virus-like particles (C-VLPs) containing specific virus RNA (vRNA) segments. Using 293T cells transfected wi...

Oncogenic viruses include both DNA and RNA viruses which contribute to cancer development by disrupting cellular regulation and interfering in the immune responses. These viruses do not directly cause cancer but instead integrate their genetic material into the host genome thus, affecting cell cycle and tumor suppression. This deregulation also lea...

Bats are commonly thought to harbour a high diversity and abundance of RNA viruses, some of which are able to jump species boundaries to emerge in new hosts. However, gaps remain in our understanding of the ecological factors that shape the bat virome and influence the diversity, circulation and persistence of viral infections. Flying foxes (Pterop...

Rabies is a fatal disease caused by a negative-strand RNA virus with a genome size of approximately 12 kilobases. Rabies kills an estimated 60,000 people per year, most of whom would have been bitten by a rabid domestic dog. In recent years whole genome sequencing of the rabies virus has become more accessible through the development of portable se...

In the original publication [...]

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a positive-sense RNA virus with an unusually large genome of approximately 30 kb. It is highly transmissible and exhibits broad tissue tropism. The third most pathogenic of all known coronaviruses, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is responsible for the cli...

Enterovirus A71 (EV‐A71) is a positive‐sense single‐stranded RNA virus, which hijacks host proteins to benefit viral internal ribosome entry site (IRES)‐dependent protein translation and further propagation. We demonstrated that serine 78 (S78) phosphorylation of Hsp27 is critical for Hsp27/hnRNP A1 relocalization upon EV‐A71 infection. Here, we re...

Background: West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne RNA virus, with birds as reservoirs and humans as incidental hosts. WNV often causes asymptomatic infections, but severe neuroinvasive disease occurs in fewer than 1% of human cases. Recent climatic changes and occupational exposure have increased its spread, particularly in Southern Italy. This...

Respiratory Tract Infections can be classified as upper and lower tract infections. Upper tract infections are more common such as laryngitis and pharyngitis, but the infections of lower respiratory tract are more fatal such as influenza or bronchitis. Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is one of the major causes of acute lower respiratory tract inf...

Norovirus is the primary cause of acute gastroenteritis outbreaks, considerably impacting children under 5 years, followed by older adults and immunocompromised individuals. As an RNA virus, norovirus exhibits high genetic variability, driven by recombination events at the ORF1–ORF2 junction. This study reports the first detection of the rare norov...

RNA interference (RNAi) and autophagy are two pivotal biological processes that regulate virus replication. This study explored the complex relationship between autophagy and RNAi in controlling influenza virus replication. Initially, we reported that influenza virus (H9N2) infection increases the viral load and the expression of autophagy markers...

NONEXPRESSER OF PATHOGENESIS‐RELATED GENES 1 (NPR1), the receptor for salicylic acid (SA), plays a central role in the SA‐mediated basal antiviral responses. Recent studies have shown that two different plant RNA viruses encode proteins that suppress such antiviral responses by inhibiting its SUMOylation and inducing its degradation, respectively....

RNA interference (RNAi) is a key antiviral immune mechanism in eukaryotes. However, antiviral RNAi in vertebrates has only been observed in cells with poor interferon systems or in viral suppressors of RNAi (VSR) deficiency virus infections. Our research discovered that infecting macrophages with wild-type coronavirus (Infectious bronchitis virus,...

A metatranscriptomics study of a dominant bluetongue virus vector, Culicoides brevitarsis from Australia, identified 10 com-plete/near-complete viral genomes including 7 novel species. Abstract Culicoides spp., a common biting midge genus, are haematophagous insects that can transmit pathogens to humans and other animals. Some species transmit arbo...

Host factors that are involved in modulating cellular vesicular trafficking of virus progeny could be potential antiviral drug targets. ADP-ribosylation factors (ARFs) are GTPases that regulate intracellular vesicular transport upon GTP binding. Here we demonstrate that genetic depletion of ARF4 suppresses viral infection by multiple pathogenic RNA...

Mitochondrial antiviral signaling (MAVS) was first discovered as an activator of NF-κB and IRF3 in response to viral infection in 2005. As a key innate immune adapter that acts as an ‘on/off’ switch in immune signaling against most RNA viruses. Upon interaction with RIG-I, MAVS aggregates to activate downstream signaling pathway. The MAVS gene, loc...

A lateral flow biosensor was developed based on newly established primer extension nucleic acid isothermal amplification (PEIA) and M13mp18 single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) to visually identify the H1N1 virus. The PEIA process was primer based on a template to continuously extend multiple repeat sequences, using DNA polymerase, to form long ssDNAs. M13m...

MDA5 is an innate pattern recognition receptor that is implicated in the recognition of various viruses. It can recognize RNA viruses, activate downstream signaling pathways, facilitate the transcription of inflammatory factors, and induce cell pyroptosis. Pyroptosis is a programmed cell death mode, accompanied by the release of inflammatory factor...

Dengue fever is known as a viral infection that is spread by several vectors, the most important of which is the Aedes mosquito (such as Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus) and is caused by the dengue virus (RNA virus) of the family Flaviviridae. DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, and DENV-4 has main four serotype of the virus, In 2013 the fifth serotype was...

Bovine viral diarrheal virus (BVDV) infection causes a diverse range of clinical outcomes from being asymptomatic, or a transient mild disease, to producing severe cases of acute disease that leading to animal death. The infected animals may suffer from mild diarrhoea or respiratory symptoms or else show no signs of infection at all. BVDV is a smal...

Viruses impose a substantial disease burden on dogs and the close relationship between dogs and humans may facilitate zoonotic disease emergence. Australia’s geographic isolation, strict biosecurity measures and native dingo populations present a unique model for understanding the spread and evolution of canine viruses. However, aside from a few we...

Lettuce big-vein disease (LBVD) is a major disease affecting lettuce cultivation worldwide. LBVD is caused by two unrelated negative-stranded RNA viruses, that is, Mirafiori lettuce big-vein virus (MiLBVV) and Lettuce big-vein associated virus (LBVaV) both vectored by the soilborne fungus Olpidium virulentus . Despite extensive research, a synergis...

Recent advancements in monocot transformation, using leaf tissue as explant material, have expanded the number of grass species capable of transgenesis. However, the complexity of vectors and reliance on inducible excision of essential morphogenic regulators have so far limited widespread application. Plant RNA viruses, such as Foxtail Mosaic Virus...

Mycoviruses studies have been increasing in the last few years. Most of them are focused on the ability of the virus to positively or negatively affect the virulence of their host. Hypervirulence-associated mycoviruses infecting important entomopathogenic fungi such as Metarhizium anisopliae or Beauveria bassiana increase their pathogenicity agains...

COVID-19 disease is a clinical syndrome caused by an envelope RNA virus, called SARS-COV-2., which causes infection with wildly clinical pictures. Through COVID-19 infection several components of humoral and cellular immune response have an important role in the progression of the infection. Chemokines are one of the inflammatory mediators that pla...

A virga-like virus, provisionally named “Viburnum opulus virus 1” (VoV1), was identified by RNA-seq in a Viburnum opulus plant. The monopartite genome of VoV1 is 12,538 nucleotides (nt) in length, excluding the poly(A) tail, and contains seven open reading frames (ORF1–7). The genome organization most closely resembles those of two unclassified pla...

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) with paraneoplastic dermatomyositis (DM) is an exceptionally rare clinical phenomenon, particularly among European populations. This case report details a 46-year-old woman initially diagnosed with DM, later confirmed to have NPC. Such an association is more frequently documented in Asian populations, highlighting its...

Leaf beetles of the subfamily Chrysomelinae are not only herbivorous pests but also potential vectors of plant pathogens. Here, we describe a novel negative-sense virus named "Aulacophora lewisii nyamivirus 1" (ALNyV1), discovered in a leaf beetle (Aulacophora lewisii), a prevalent pest of cucurbitaceous vegetables. Using transcriptome sequencing a...

Mycoviruses are viruses that infect fungi, yeasts, and oomycetes and can replicate and multiply within them. They are widely distributed in plant- and animal-pathogenic fungi. In this study, we identified a novel positive-sense single-stranded RNA (+ ssRNA) mycovirus from Ustilaginoidea virens strain Uv339, the causal agent of rice false smut (RSF)...

Climate change thaws permafrost, which releases greenhouse gases partly from dormant microorganisms awakening and metabolizing organic matter. Though DNA viruses that infect these soil microbes have been studied, little is known on soil RNA viruses, which typically infect microeukaryotes. Here we identify and characterize 2,651 RNA viruses from a 4...

The application is demonstrated of injection-molded centrifugal microfluidic chips with integrated optical pH sensors for multiplexed detection of respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), influenza A, and influenza B RNA. The optical pH sensors generated sensitive fluorescent readouts from diagnostic reverse transcription loop-mediated isot...

Influenza A, a negative-sense RNA virus, has a genome that consists of eight single-stranded RNA segments. Influenza co-infections can result in re-assortant viruses that contain gene segments from multiple strains, causing pandemic outbreaks with severe consequences for human health. The outcome of re-assortment is likely influenced by a selective...

Some basic differences between RNA-virus infections and immune reactions elicited after injection of modified biotech-constructed RNA or DNA short viral sequences are briefly presented based on consolidated knowledge on viruses and immunology. Reactivity to manufactured biotech-RNAs are relatively known and controlled within test tubes. As opposed,...

Respiratory viral infections present significant global health challenges, causing substantial morbidity and mortality, particularly among highly susceptible components of the population. The emergence of pandemics and epidemics, such as those caused by influenza viruses and coronaviruses, emphasizes the urgent need for effective antiviral therapeu...

COVID-19, first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, a pathogen that primarily targets the respiratory system and can lead to severe conditions such as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Among the seven coronaviruses known to infect humans, three—SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2—are associated w...

Potyviruses possess one positive-sense single-stranded RNA genome, mainly dependent on polyprotein processing as the expression strategy. The resulting polyproteins are proteolytically processed by three virus-encoded proteases into 11 or 12 mature proteins. One such factor, 6 kDa peptide 1 (6K1), is an understudied viral factor. Its function in vi...

The full genome sequence of a positive-sense (+) single-stranded (ss) RNA virus, which we have named "Neopestalotiopsis nebuloides deltaflexivirus 1" (NnDFV1), from Neopestalotiopsis nebuloides strain N-7 was sequenced and analyzed. The NnDFV1 genome is 7,719 nucleotides in length with a GC content of 49%, excluding the poly(A) tail, and contains a...

Junín virus (JUNV) is a mammarenavirus that causes Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF). Mammarenaviruses are RNA viruses with an ambisense, bi-segmented genome containing four genes encoding the glycoproteins (GPC), the nucleoprotein (NP), the RNA polymerase (L) and the matrix protein (Z). Several JUNV strains with different pathogenicity have alread...

The Varroa destructor mite’s transmission of deformed wing virus (DWV) to honey bees is responsible for most winter mortalities of colonies worldwide. Four DWV genotypes (A, B, C and D) and numerous recombinants have been described. The most recent studies have reported the greater prevalence of DWV-B over DWV-A in several countries, including Euro...

Background Viral vaccines have been proven significant in protecting us against viral diseases such as COVID-19. To better understand and design viral vaccines, it is critical to systematically collect, annotate, and analyse various viral vaccines and identify enriched patterns from these viral vaccines. Methods We systematically collected experim...

Pestiviruses, RNA viruses belonging to the Flaviviridae family, have a broad host range. Their pathogenicity varies greatly and they have caused significant economic losses in animal husbandry. In this study, a novel pestivirus, porcine abortion-associated pestivirus (PAAPeV), was isolated from pigs in China in 2023. Clinically, PAAPeV causes abort...

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV ) is one of the pathogenic viruses that enter the human body and replicate in T-cells, leading to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome ( AIDS). On the other hand, GB-virus C (GBV-C) is a virus that enters the human body without known pathogenic effects on the human body. It is mostly related to the Flaviviridae famil...

Nipah virus (NiV) is a bat-borne, zoonotic RNA virus that is highly pathogenic in humans. The NiV polymerase, which mediates viral genome replication and mRNA transcription, is a promising drug target. We determined the cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of the NiV polymerase complex, comprising the large protein (L) and phosphoprotein (P)...

Avian reovirus (ARV), a double-stranded RNA virus, frequently induces immunosuppression in poultry, leading to symptoms such as irregular bleeding and spleen necrosis in infected ducks. Since 2017, the morbidity and mortality rates associated with ARV infection in poultry have been on the rise, progressively emerging as a significant viral disease...