Diversity and Ecological Potentials of Marine Viruses Inhabiting Continental Shelf Seas.

ABSTRACT: Viruses are critical components of all marine ecosystems. However, the role of viruses in continental shelf seas, which are usually areas of intense economic development, remain poorly characterized. Here, 62 seawater viromes from the eastern continental shelf seas of China (ECSSC), collected between 2017 and 2022, are systematically analyzed. A total of 310,628 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs) are identified, providing the most comprehensive overview of DNA viral communities in the ECSSC. Among them, 136,652 (42.3%) vOTUs could be classified into 89 families, dominated by Kyanoviridae, Autographiviridae and Zobellviridae. Only 31,994 (10.3%) of the vOTUs have predicted putative hosts, of which 91.4% are associated with specific hosts, including 31 bacterial and 10 archaeal phyla.

SUBMITTER: Guo X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12766990 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature