Scientists discover virus with no recognizable genes

Viruses are some of the most mysterious organisms on Earth. They’re among the world’s tiniest lifeforms, and because none can survive and reproduce without a host, some scientists have questioned whether they should even be considered living things. Now, scientists have discovered one that has no recognizable genes, making it among the strangest of all known viruses. But how many viruses do we really know? Another group has just discovered thousands of new viruses hiding out in the tissues of dozens of animals.

The finds speak to “how much we still need to understand” about viruses, says one of the researchers, Jônatas Abrahão, a virologist at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte.

Abrahão made his discovery while hunting down giant viruses. These microbes—some the size of bacteria—were first discovered in amoebae in 2003. In a local artificial lake, he and his colleagues found not only new giant viruses, but also a virus that—because of its small size—was unlike most that infect in amoebae. They named it Yaravirus. (Yara is the “mother of waters” according to Indigenous Tupi-Guarani mythology.)

Scientists discover virus with no recognizable genes

Scientists discovered that the virus did not have any genes in it that they had seen before. All the genes in the virus were novel. This is their report on the bioRxiv preprint server.

Elodie Ghedin looks for viruses in respiratory systems and also in wastewater. She reports that in the sewage water data, over 95% of the viruses have “no matches to reference genomes”. The new virus does not surprise her because “We seem to be discovering new viruses all the time.”

Sounds like novel virus are not really that novel.

Second source:
Scientists detect new virus with no recognizable genes including 600 microbes new to science

As per a newly published study researchers have found around 2500 circular viruses and among them, 600 viruses are new to the science. But it is still not clear that if any of these come in the contact with human what will happen.

As per Buck, this newly published data should allow scientists as well as doctors to start making those connections. In addition to that, Abrahão said, the approach is a very important tool "To learn the distribution of hundreds or thousands of viral genomes."

Study


For years we have also known of this danger.

There are diseases hidden in ice, and they are waking up

Throughout history, humans have existed side-by-side with bacteria and viruses. From the bubonic plague to smallpox, we have evolved to resist them, and in response they have developed new ways of infecting us.

We have had antibiotics for almost a century, ever since Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin. In response, bacteria have responded by evolving antibiotic resistance. The battle is endless: because we spend so much time with pathogens, we sometimes develop a kind of natural stalemate.

However, what would happen if we were suddenly exposed to deadly bacteria and viruses that have been absent for thousands of years, or that we have never met before?

Melting Arctic ice may be causing a deadly virus to spread in marine mammals

A deadly virus is rapidly spreading among marine mammals in the Arctic. In a new study published Wednesday in the journal Nature, scientists have found a link between the disease and melting sea ice...

It doesn't matter if the ice is melting due to man or just a normal Earth cycle. It is melting and it is exposing viruses.

Viruses are also being bio-engineered. There are too many new viruses to worry about these days.

Viruses really don't fit the definition of life either, they are more like tiny machines. So who or what built them?


I am going to stock up on things that kill viruses.

And then just forget about them.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Regarding the viruses frozen in ice... is there literally no way they can die off due to inactivity? Because otherwise we could end up dealing with dinosaur-era # if they are pretty much immortal when inert.

a reply to: Mateo96


I am sure some "die". They really are not alive so they can't really die, it's more like some don't reanimate.

It is a pretty good bet that there are still virus "sleeping" on Earth from the dinosaur-era.

There are thousands of known viruses out there, but most of them are not a problem for humans. Our immune systems know how to handle them and sometimes our cells are not their target.

If you would like to help medical science learn how to fight these kinds of viruses, just ask your doctor for a prescription of the immune system blockers on the TV to treat your acne. They are always recruiting guinea pigs.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

many could have come from outer space on space rock sent here by aliens to destroy the human race!

The sleeping virus will becomes a problem since the findings will be used in biological weapon research and then it will no longer be sleeping.

a reply to: LittleByLittle

The US and the Russians are drilling into deep under ice lakes at the South Pole. They bring samples of life up and out of it's natural containment. Not very smart.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

I think we'll be seeing a lot more of this as permafrost and glaciers melt.

Panspermia is a real phenomena. Microbiotic lifeforms are always falling into the Earth's gravity well from space. Mostly diffused in meteoric dust, meteorites but also cometary tail ice, liquids and dust. A million sources can deliver to the biosphere any number of materials including our own space debris.

Ice solid for millions of years holds whatever was in the air and environment at the time it was locked into the permafrost, glacial and ice cap frozen waters. All to release in a melt down. Many of the living organisms can have viable or awakening biologicals from spores, bacteria or such as viral and "other" once released living materials.

Do you remember the "Red Rain" in India several years back that turned out to be like cellular life but without a nucleus or DNA? That type of material has been washing up on the Earths gravitational beach since forever.

There are correlations for world wide disease from the Earth's passing through cometary tails where either a new biocomponent changes existing (with new DNA) or a completely new organism altogether is introduced in a large enough volume that can effect Earth life, and in ways we can't yet see or recognise, let alone understand.

originally posted by: LookingAtMars
a reply to: Mateo96


I am sure some "die". They really are not alive so they can't really die, it's more like some don't reanimate.

It is a pretty good bet that there are still virus "sleeping" on Earth from the dinosaur-era.

Ummm...tell me...my favorite Martian...

How can something not alive...that can’t die...for never having lived...

sleep...?

Also...if they do not live...then why the preoccupation...with reproduction...?

If it weren’t for their shagging their way through our respiratory systems...they’d never be a problem...


So...reproduction belies the not life claim...virus’s also mutate and evolve...obviously...


“I reject your version of reality...and substitute my own”...







YouSir

a reply to: YouSir

Also...if they do not live...then why the preoccupation...with reproduction

They don't really reproduce, YouSir my friend.

However, in the real sense they do not really reproduce, but multiply. The virus structure is made in a way that allows it to replicate itself, thus creating numerous viruses. This is the reason why many will refer to the process as reproduction. There are two main ways that viruses reproduce or multiply and these are listed below.

I know, I picked the easy one to respond to.

a reply to: LookingAtMars


Ummm...to what end...not really reproducing as they instead...multiply...

Methinks the author is laboring under semantics...

These not life’s...hijack cells and inject/infect the cells with their genetic material...and the cell begins to replicate new virus’s...

In essence...these hijacked cells become the eggs of the virus...the virus totally rewrites the genetic structure of the cell/egg/host...

Re-writes...the genetic code...


That’s a fairly advanced methodology for a...not-life to use...in order to reproduce/replicate...

That...envisions enormous data transfers between parasite and host...







YouSir

originally posted by: CrazeeWorld777
a reply to: LookingAtMars

many could have come from outer space on space rock sent here by aliens to destroy the human race!

I knew it. It ALWAYS comes back to aliens!

Wait.. what if the virus was itself the alien?! Completely sentient teeny tiny weird human hating extraterrestrials.

We clearly misunderstood Marvin The Martian we he said he was going to blow up the earth. He tricked us into taking it literally when all along he was planting viruses in our ice. Sneaky little bastard.

a reply to: YouSir

In essence...these hijacked cells become the eggs of the virus...the virus totally rewrites the genetic structure of the cell/egg/host... Re-writes...the genetic code...

Seems more brute force than advanced methodology to me. More like a machine than something alive.

From the long link above.

So how does this alien /yaravirus multiply?

Im its host lile amoeba, protozoa?

And whats the highest lifeform it can infect, fish, mammals, humans???