Deltaretroviruses infect a broad range of mammalian species and have circulated since the Paleogene

Hron, T., Elleder, D. and Gifford, R. J. (2019) Deltaretroviruses infect a broad range of mammalian species and have circulated since the Paleogene. Retrovirology, 16, 33. (doi: 10.1186/s12977-019-0495-9) (PMID:31775783) (PMCID:PMC6882180)

[img]
Preview
Text
203621.pdf - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution.

2MB

Abstract

The Deltaretrovirus genus of retroviruses (family Retroviridae) includes the human T cell leukemia viruses and bovine leukemia virus (BLV). Relatively little is known about the biology and evolution of these viruses, because only a few species have been identified and the genomic ‘fossil record’ is relatively sparse. Here, we report the discovery of multiple novel endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) derived from ancestral deltaretroviruses. These sequences—two of which contain complete or near complete internal coding regions—reside in genomes of several distinct mammalian orders, including bats, carnivores, cetaceans, and insectivores. We demonstrate that two of these ERVs contain unambiguous homologs of the tax gene, indicating that complex gene regulation has ancient origins within the Deltaretrovirus genus. ERVs demonstrate that the host range of the deltaretrovirus genus is much more extensive than suggested by the relatively small number of exogenous deltaretroviruses described so far, and allow the evolutionary timeline of deltaretrovirus-mammal interaction to be more accurately calibrated.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:RJG was funded by the Medical Research Council of the United Kingdom (MC_UU_12014/12). TH and DE acknowledge the institutional support by projects RVO 68378050 and NPU I LO1419.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Gifford, Dr Robert
Authors: Hron, T., Elleder, D., and Gifford, R. J.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity
College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity > Centre for Virus Research
Journal Name:Retrovirology
Publisher:BioMed Central
ISSN:1742-4690
ISSN (Online):1742-4690
Copyright Holders:Copyright © The Authors 2019
First Published:First published in Retrovirology 16:33
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons license

University Staff: Request a correction | Enlighten Editors: Update this record

Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
MC_UU_12014/12