Complete Genome Sequence and Lytic Phase Transcription Profile of a Coccolithovirus

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 309; no. 5737; pp. 1090 - 1092
• Main Authors: Wilson, William H, Schroeder, Declan C, Allen, Michael J, Holden, Matthew T. G, Parkhill, Julian, Barrell, Bart G, Churcher, Carol, Hamlin, Nancy, Mungall, Karen, Norbertczak, Halina, Quail, Michael A, Price, Claire, Rabbinowitsch, Ester, Walker, Danielle, Craigon, Marie, Roy, Douglas, Ghazal, Peter
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Association for the Advancement of Science 12-08-2005; The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subjects: Algae; Analysis; Apoptosis; Base Composition; Biological and medical sciences; Ceramides - biosynthesis; Coding; Computational Biology; DNA, Viral - chemistry; DNA, Viral - genetics; DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases - genetics; Eukaryota - virology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression; Gene Expression Profiling; Genes; Genes, Viral; Genetics; Genome, Viral; Genomes; Genomics; Marine; Marine algae; Microbiology; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; Peptide Hydrolases - genetics; Phosphates; Phycodnaviridae; Phycodnaviridae - classification; Phycodnaviridae - genetics; Phycodnaviridae - physiology; Promoter Regions, Genetic; Protein Subunits; RNA; RNA polymerase; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Sphingolipids; Sphingolipids - biosynthesis; Transcription, Genetic; Transcriptomics; Transcripts (Written Records); Virology; Virus Replication; Viruses; United States; Marine environment; Virus; Gene; Nucleotide sequence; Transcription; Ceramide; Sphingolipid; Genome
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1113109

The genus Coccolithovirus is a recently discovered group of viruses that infect the globally important marine calcifying microalga Emiliania huxleyi. Among the 472 predicted genes of the 407,339-base pair genome are a variety of unexpected genes, most notably those involved in biosynthesis of ceramide, a sphingolipid known to induce apoptosis. Uniquely for algal viruses, it also contains six RNA polymerase subunits and a novel promoter, suggesting this virus encodes its own transcription machinery. Microarray transcriptomic analysis reveals that 65% of the predicted virus-encoded genes are expressed during lytic infection of E. huxleyi.