Tupanvirus


Tupanvirus is the name of two giant viruses, Tupanvirus deep ocean and Tupanvirus soda lake. They are named after Tupã, a Guaraní thunder god, and the places they were found. These are the first viruses reported to possess genes for amino-acyl tRNA synthetases for all 20 standard amino acids.
Tupanvirus measure up to 1.2 μm in complete virion length, with a capsid similar to that of amoebal mimiviruses in size and structure. However, the Tupanvirus virion presents a large cylindrical tail attached to the base of the capsid. Some particles can reach up to 2.3 μm because of the variation in tail size.

Genome

The genome contains roughly 1.5 million base pairs of double-stranded DNA, coding for 1276–1425 predicted proteins. Many genes that encode for processes found in cellular organisms are found in Tupanvirus genome. As a giant virus, Tupanvirus present the largest translational apparatus within the known virosphere. The analysis of tupanviruses constitutes a new step towards understanding the evolution of giant viruses.

Host

Tupanviruses are able to infect protists and amoebas, but probably pose no threat to humans.