''Totivirus'' is a genus of

double-stranded RNA viruses Double-stranded RNA viruses (dsRNA viruses) are a Polyphyly, polyphyletic group of viruses that have Nucleic acid double helix, double-stranded genomes made of ribonucleic acid. The double-stranded genome is used to transcribe a Sense (molecular ...

in the family ''

Totiviridae ''Totiviridae'' is a family of double-stranded RNA viruses. Giardia lamblia, leishmania, trichomonas vaginalis, and fungi serve as natural hosts. The name of the group derives from Latin ''toti'' which means undivided or whole. There are 28 spec ...

''. Fungi serve as natural hosts. The name of the group derives from

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 ...

''toti'' which means undivided or whole. There are seven species in this genus.

Structure

Viruses in the genus ''Totivirus'' are non-enveloped, with

icosahedral In geometry, an icosahedron ( or ) is a polyhedron with 20 faces. The name comes and . The plural can be either "icosahedra" () or "icosahedrons". There are infinitely many non- similar shapes of icosahedra, some of them being more symmetrica ...

symmetry, and T=2 architecture. The diameter is around 40 nm.

Genome

Totiviruses have a

genome In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding g ...

of 4700–6700

nucleotides Nucleotides are organic molecules consisting of a nucleoside and a phosphate. They serve as monomeric units of the nucleic acid polymers – deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA), both of which are essential biomolecules with ...

in length and only a single copy of the genome is present in the particle. The nucleic acid content of a totivirus capsid is usually of one segment but can also contain three or four segments of linear double stranded RNA. The

contains two large overlapping

open reading frame In molecular biology, open reading frames (ORFs) are defined as spans of DNA sequence between the start and stop codons. Usually, this is considered within a studied region of a prokaryotic DNA sequence, where only one of the six possible readin ...

s (ORFs). These

open reading frames In molecular biology, open reading frames (ORFs) are defined as spans of DNA sequence between the start and stop codons. Usually, this is considered within a studied region of a prokaryotic DNA sequence, where only one of the six possible readin ...

(ORFs) code for a capsid protein (CP) and an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). The 5' end of the positive strand of the dsRNA genome has no cap and is very structured. Totiviruses contain a long 5' untranslated region (5' UTR) which functions as an

internal ribosome entry site An internal ribosome entry site, abbreviated IRES, is an RNA element that allows for translation initiation in a cap-independent manner, as part of the greater process of protein synthesis. In eukaryotic translation, initiation typically occurs at ...

(IRES). Totiviruses can have satellite RNAs encoding a

toxin A toxin is a naturally occurring organic poison produced by metabolic activities of living cells or organisms. Toxins occur especially as a protein or conjugated protein. The term toxin was first used by organic chemist Ludwig Brieger (1849 ...

Life cycle

Viral replication is cytoplasmic. Entry into the host cell is achieved by virus remains intracellular. Replication follows the double-stranded RNA virus replication model. Double-stranded RNA virus transcription is the method of transcription. Translation takes place by -1 ribosomal frameshifting. The virus exits the host cell by cell-to-cell movement. Fungi ''

Saccharomyces cerevisiae ''Saccharomyces cerevisiae'' () (brewer's yeast or baker's yeast) is a species of yeast (single-celled fungus microorganisms). The species has been instrumental in winemaking, baking, and brewing since ancient times. It is believed to have b ...

'' and smut serve as the natural host. The virus is transmitted during cell division, sporogenesis, and cell fusion.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Totivirus'' contains the member species: * ''

Saccharomyces cerevisiae virus L-A ''Saccharomyces cerevisiae virus L-A'', also called L-A helper virus, is a member of the ''Totiviridae'' family of viruses found primarily in ''Saccharomyces cerevisiae''. Its discovery in the 1970s was the main starting point of research on yeas ...

'' * '' Saccharomyces cerevisiae virus LBCLa'' * '' Scheffersomyces segobiensis virus L'' * '' Tuber aestivum virus 1'' * '' Ustilago maydis virus H1'' * '' Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous virus L1A'' * '' Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous virus L1B''

References

External links

ICTV Totivirus Page

ICTV
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7828339 Totiviridae Mycoviruses Virus genera