Picornavirales


Picornavirales is an order of viruses with vertebrate, insect, algal or plant hosts. The name has a dual etymology. First, picorna- is an acronym for poliovirus, insensitivity to ether, coxsackievirus, orphan virus, rhinovirus, and ribonucleic acid. Secondly, pico-, meaning extremely small, combines with RNA to describe these very small RNA viruses.

Characteristics

The families within this order share a number of common features:
The evolution of picorna-like viruses seems to have antedated the separation of eukaryotes into the extant crown groups.

Taxonomy

The following families are recognized: