A novel recombinant retrovirus in the genomes of modern birds combines features of avian and mammalian retroviruses.

ABSTRACT:

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Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) represent ancestral sequences of modern retroviruses or their extinct relatives. The majority of ERVs cluster alongside exogenous retroviruses into two main groups based on phylogenetic analyses of the reverse transcriptase (RT) enzyme. Class I includes gammaretroviruses, and class II includes lentiviruses and alpha-, beta-, and deltaretroviruses. However, analyses of the transmembrane subunit (TM) of the envelope glycoprotein (env) gene result in a different topology for some retroviruses, suggesting recombination events in which heterologous env sequences have been acquired. We previously demonstrated that the TM sequences of five of the six genera of orthoretroviruses can be divided into three types, each of which infects a distinct set

SUBMITTER: Henzy JE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3958055 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature