''Ampullaviridae'' is a family of viruses that infect archaea of the genus '' Acidianus''. Only one genus in this family has been described, ''Bottigliavirus'', which contains three species. The name of the family and genus is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word for bottle, ''ampulla'', due to the

virion A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsky's ...

s having the shape of a

bottle A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material (such as glass, plastic or aluminium) in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal stop ...

. The family was first described during an investigation of the microbial flora of

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by c ...

s in Italy.

Taxonomy

The family contains one genus, which has three species: * Genus: ''Bottigliavirus'', previously named ''Ampullavirus'' ** ''Bottigliavirus ABV'', previously named ''Acidianus bottle-shaped virus'' ** ''Bottigliavirus ABV2'' ** ''Bottigliavirus ABV3''

Structure and genome

Ampullaviruses have unique morphology, with the virions being bottle-shaped with one narrow end that smoothly expands into a wider end for an overall length of about 230 nm and width of about 75 nm at the broad end. The narrow end projects beyond the

viral envelope A viral envelope is the outermost layer of many types of viruses. It protects the genetic material in their life cycle when traveling between host cells. Not all viruses have envelopes. Numerous human pathogenic viruses in circulation are encase ...

and is likely used to inject the viral DNA into host cells. The broad end possesses about 20 thin filaments, each that are regularly distributed in a ring. Inside the envelope is a funnel-shaped protein coat that houses the viral DNA.The genome of ampullaviruses is linear, double-stranded DNA that is about 23.8

kilobase A base pair (bp) is a fundamental unit of double-stranded nucleic acids consisting of two nucleobases bound to each other by hydrogen bonds. They form the building blocks of the DNA double helix and contribute to the folded structure of both DN ...

s in length. The genome contains an estimated 56 or 57 open reading frames that encode for at least six structural proteins.

Life cycle

Viral replication is cytoplasmic. Entry into the host cell is achieved by virus attaches to host cell. DNA-templated transcription is the method of transcription. Archaea of the genus ''Acidianus'' serve as the natural host. Transmission routes are passive diffusion.

References

External links

* ICTV Online Report: ''Ampullaviridae'

* Viral zone

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4748567 Ampullaviridae, Archaeal viruses Virus families