Notes on Family: Filoviridae
eveloped filaments or bacilliform
Contents
General Description
This family is characterised by its pleomorphic but usually filamentous or bacilliform, enveloped, particles which contain a monopartite negative sense ssRNA genome of about 19kb. It is classified in the order
Mononegavirales with three other families of enveloped viruses with monopartite negative sense genomes, i.e. the
Bornaviridae and
Paramyxoviridae (both with spherical particles) and
Rhabdoviridae (particles bullet-shaped and genome up to about 15 kb).
Morphology
Virions pleomorphic but usually filamentous or bacilliform, enveloped, about 80 nm in diameter and up to about 970nm long (although they may appear longer because of aggregation), with small (10 nm) projections.
Genomen
Monopartite single-stranded negative sense RNA of about 19 kb. There is no genome-linked protein (VPg) at the 5'-terminus nor a 3'-polyA tail. There are 7 major ORFs with the RNA polymerase at the 5'-end of the genome and the capsid nucleoprotein at the 3'-end.
Genera in the Family
