Evolution shapes and conserves genomic signatures in viruses.

ABSTRACT: The genomic signature of an organism captures the characteristics of repeated oligonucleotide patterns in its genome ¹, such as oligomer frequencies, GC content, and differences in codon usage. Viruses, however, are obligate intracellular parasites that are dependent on their host cells for replication, and information about genomic signatures in viruses has hitherto been sparse.Here, we investigate the presence and specificity of genomic signatures in 2,768 eukaryotic viral species from 105 viral families, aiming to illuminate dependencies and selective pressures in viral genome evolution. We demonstrate that most viruses have highly specific genomic signatures that often also differ significantly between species within the same family. The species-specificity is most prominent

SUBMITTER: Holmudden M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11526014 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature