An orphan viral genome with unclear evolutionary status sheds light on a distinct lineage of flavi-like viruses infecting plants.

ABSTRACT: Advancements in high-throughput sequencing and associated bioinformatics methods have significantly expanded the RNA virus repertoire, including novel viruses with highly divergent genomes encoding "orphan" proteins that apparently lack homologous sequences. This absence of homologs in routine sequence similarity search complicates their taxonomic classification and raises a fundamental question: Do these orphan viral genomes represent bona ide viruses? In 2022, an orphan viral genome encoding a large polyprotein was identified in alfalfa (Medicago sativa) and thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), and named Snake River alfalfa virus (SRAV). SRAV was initially proposed as an uncommon flavi-like virus identified in a plant host distantly related to family Flaviviridae<

SUBMITTER: Xu Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11749231 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature