To be or not to be a virus: A novel chimeric circular Rep-encoding single stranded DNA virus with interfamilial gene exchange illustrates the considerable evolutionary capacity of ssDNA viruses.

ABSTRACT: Viruses in the family Geminiviridae cause significant economic losses in numerous crops worldwide. Some geminiviruses are often associated with satellite DNA molecules, such as alphasatellites (familly Alphasatellitidae), that require the assistance of a helper virus for their transmission. Here, we report the discovery of a chimeric virus, tentatively named Cenchrus purpureus associated virus (CPAV), in Cenchrus purpureus plants in La Réunion. The genome of CPAV consists of a single component that is primarily geminivirus-like. It contains a rep gene phylogenetically most closely related alphasatellites. This rep gene is positioned upstream of, and in the same orientation as, the movement and capsid protein genes. Both of these genes are phylogenetically most related to members of the gen

SUBMITTER: Ben Chehida S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12360566 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature