''Macavirus'' is a genus of

viruses 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 1 ...

in the order ''

Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group I) with animal hosts, characterised by a common morphology consisting of an icosahedral capsid enclosed in a glycoprotein-containing lipid envelope. Common infections in humans c ...

'', in the family ''

Herpesviridae ''Herpesviridae'' is a large family of DNA viruses that cause infections and certain diseases in animals, including humans. The members of this family are also known as herpesviruses. The family name is derived from the Greek word ''ἕρπειν ...

'', in the subfamily ''

Gammaherpesvirinae ''Gammaherpesvirinae'' is a subfamily of viruses in the order ''Herpesvirales'' and in the family ''Herpesviridae''. Viruses in ''Gammaherpesvirinae'' are distinguished by reproducing at a more variable rate than other subfamilies of ''Herpesvir ...

''. Mammals serve as natural hosts. There are nine species in this genus. Diseases associated with this genus include: inapparent infection in their reservoir hosts (wildebeest for alHV-1 and sheep for ovHV-2), but fatal

lymphoproliferative Lymphoproliferative disorders (LPDs) refer to a specific class of diagnoses, comprising a group of several conditions, in which lymphocytes are produced in excessive quantities. These disorders primarily present in patients who have a compromised ...

disease when they infect MCF-susceptible hosts, including cattle, deer, bison, water buffalo and pigs.

Species

The genus consists of the following nine species: * ''

Alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 1 Bovine malignant catarrhal fever (BMCF) is a fatal lymphoproliferative disease caused by a group of ruminant gamma herpes viruses including ''Alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 1'' (AlHV-1) and ''Ovine gammaherpesvirus 2'' (OvHV-2) These viruses cause ...

'' * ''

Alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 2 ''Alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 2'' (AlHV-2) is a species of ''Macavirus'' that is believed to be responsible for causing hartebeest infections of malignant catarrhal fever. Clinical definition Distantly related to human herpes, a virus of this ...

'' * ''

Bovine gammaherpesvirus 6 ''Bovine gammaherpesvirus 6'' (BoHV-6) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group ...

'' * ''

Caprine gammaherpesvirus 2 ''Caprine gammaherpesvirus 2'' (CpHV-2) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group ...

'' * ''

Hippotragine gammaherpesvirus 1 ''Hippotragine gammaherpesvirus 1'' (HiHV-1) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore ...

'' * ''

Ovine gammaherpesvirus 2 ''Ovine gammaherpesvirus 2'' (OvHV-2) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group I ...

'' * ''

Suid gammaherpesvirus 3 ''Suid gammaherpesvirus 3'' (SuHV-3) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group I) ...

'' * ''

Suid gammaherpesvirus 4 ''Suid gammaherpesvirus 4'' (SuHV-4) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group I) ...

'' * ''

Suid gammaherpesvirus 5 ''Suid gammaherpesvirus 5'' (SuHV-5) is a species of virus in the genus ''Macavirus'', subfamily ''Gammaherpesvirinae'', family ''Herpesviridae'', and order ''Herpesvirales The ''Herpesvirales'' is an order of dsDNA viruses (Baltimore group I) ...

Structure

Viruses in ''Macavirus'' are enveloped, with icosahedral, spherical to pleomorphic, and Round geometries, and T=16 symmetry. The diameter is around 150-200 nm. Genomes are linear and non-segmented, around 180kb in length.

Life cycle

Viral replication is nuclear, and is lysogenic. Entry into the host cell is achieved by attachment of the viral glycoproteins to host receptors, which mediates endocytosis. Replication follows the dsDNA bidirectional replication model. Dna templated transcription, with some alternative splicing mechanism is the method of transcription. The virus exits the host cell by nuclear egress, and budding. Mammals serve as the natural host.

References

External links

Viralzone: ''Macavirus''

ICTV
{{Taxonbar, from=Q18813549 Herpesviridae Virus genera