School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Department of Biological Sciences, School of Science, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou, P. R. China.
Nat Commun. 2023 May 9;14(1):2676. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-38400-0.
Viruses in built environments (BEs) raise public health concerns, yet they are generally less studied than bacteria. To better understand viral dynamics in BEs, this study assesses viromes from 11 habitats across four types of BEs with low to high occupancy. The diversity, composition, metabolic functions, and lifestyles of the viromes are found to be habitat dependent. Caudoviricetes species are ubiquitous on surface habitats in the BEs, and some of them are distinct from those present in other environments. Antimicrobial resistance genes are identified in viruses inhabiting surfaces frequently touched by occupants and in viruses inhabiting occupants' skin. Diverse CRISPR/Cas immunity systems and anti-CRISPR proteins are found in bacterial hosts and viruses, respectively, consistent with the strongly coupled virus-host links. Evidence of viruses potentially aiding host adaptation in a specific-habitat manner is identified through a unique gene insertion. This work illustrates that virus-host interactions occur frequently in BEs and that viruses are integral members of BE microbiomes.
建筑环境（BE）中的病毒引起了公众健康的关注，但它们的研究通常不如细菌广泛。为了更好地了解 BE 中的病毒动态，本研究评估了来自四类 BE 中 11 种生境的病毒组，这些 BE 的入住率从低到高不等。研究发现，病毒组的多样性、组成、代谢功能和生活方式都依赖于生境。长尾噬菌体科的物种在 BE 中的表面生境中无处不在，其中一些与其他环境中的物种不同。在经常被居住者触摸的表面栖息的病毒和在居住者皮肤中栖息的病毒中，都鉴定出了抗微生物耐药性基因。在细菌宿主和病毒中，分别发现了多样化的 CRISPR/Cas 免疫系统和抗 CRISPR 蛋白，这与强烈的病毒-宿主联系一致。通过一个独特的基因插入，鉴定出了病毒以特定生境方式潜在地帮助宿主适应的证据。这项工作表明，病毒-宿主相互作用在 BE 中经常发生，病毒是 BE 微生物组的不可或缺的成员。
