Notes on Family: Bunyaviridae
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enveloped spheres
Contents
- Members of this Family
- General Description
- Morphology
- Genome
- Genera in the Family
- All Known Sequences
- Curated Sequences
General Description
This family largely infects vertebrates and there are a small number of plant virus members, which form the genus Tospovirus. These have large (100nm diameter) enveloped particles, circular in cross section and containing a central core of ssRNA.Morphology
Virions pleomorphic in shape and size, spheroidal and enveloped, 80-110 nm in diameter. 3 filamentous nucleocapsids per envelope, each 200-3000 nm long (depending on arrangement) and 2-2.5 nm in diameter. Symmetry helical.Particles contain 1-2 % nucleic acid, over 50 % protein and 20-30 % lipid.
Genomen
The genome consists of three negative or ambisense ssRNA segments, designated: L (large), M (medium) and S (small).- The L segment encodes the viral RNA polymerase (negative sense)
- The M segment encodes two glycoproteins (negative sense) as a single gene product that is usually co-translationally cleaved. Tospoviruses also have a non-structural protein (NSm) encoded in the postive sense.
- The S segment encodes the coat protein (N) in the negative sense and some genera, including Tospovirus, have an additional non-structural protein (NSs) encoded in the postive sense.
Genera in the Family
- Orthobunyavirus: animal viruses; genome <10kb; S segment <1.1kb
- Hantavirus: animal viruses; genome <10kb; S segment >1.1kb; N protein >35kDa
- Nairovirus: animal viruses; genome >10kb
- Phlebovirus: animal viruses; S segment >1.1kb; N protein <35kDa
- Tospovirus: infecting plants