Snyder Jamie C, Bolduc Benjamin, Young Mark J
Department of Biological Sciences, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona, Pomona, CA, USA.
Departments of Plant Sciences and Microbiology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA.
Virology. 2015 May;479-480:369-78. doi: 10.1016/j.virol.2015.03.031. Epub 2015 Apr 10.
The first archaeal virus was isolated over 40 years ago prior to the recognition of the three domain structure of life. In the ensuing years, our knowledge of Archaea and their viruses has increased, but they still remain the most mysterious of life's three domains. Currently, over 100 archaeal viruses have been discovered, but few have been described in biochemical or structural detail. However, those that have been characterized have revealed a new world of structural, biochemical and genetic diversity. Several model systems for studying archaeal virus-host interactions have been developed, revealing evolutionary linkages between viruses infecting the three domains of life, new viral lysis systems, and unusual features of host-virus interactions. It is likely that the study of archaeal viruses will continue to provide fertile ground for fundamental discoveries in virus diversity, structure and function.
40多年前，在人们认识到生命的三域结构之前，首个古生菌病毒就已被分离出来。在随后的岁月里，我们对古生菌及其病毒的了解有所增加，但它们仍然是生命的三个域中最神秘的。目前，已发现100多种古生菌病毒，但对其中很少一部分在生化或结构细节方面进行过描述。然而，那些已被鉴定特征的病毒展现出了一个结构、生化和基因多样性的全新世界。已经开发出了几个用于研究古生菌病毒与宿主相互作用的模型系统，揭示了感染生命三个域的病毒之间的进化联系、新的病毒裂解系统以及宿主与病毒相互作用的独特特征。对古生菌病毒的研究很可能会继续为病毒多样性、结构和功能的基础发现提供丰富的土壤。
