Diverse ssRNA viruses associated with <i>Karenia brevis</i> harmful algal blooms in southwest Florida.

ABSTRACT: Harmful algal blooms (HABs) caused by the dinoflagellate Karenia brevis frequently occur in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, where they negatively impact the environment, human health, and economy. Very little is known about viruses associated with K. brevis blooms, although viral infection of other HAB-forming phytoplankton species can play an important role in bloom dynamics. We used viral metagenomics to identify viruses in 11 pooled seawater samples collected from southwest Florida, USA, in 2021 during a severe, spatiotemporally dynamic K. brevis bloom. Assembled viral genomes were similar to published genomes from the order Picornavirales, family Marnaviridae, and genera Sogarnavirus, Bacillarnavirus, and Marnavirus. Several of the cu

SUBMITTER: Lim SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12039238 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature