Scientists Discover Mysterious Virus in Brazil With No Known Genes They Can Identify

[Judi Lynn]

PETER DOCKRILL 10 FEB 2020

Scientists have identified an enigmatic virus whose genome seems to be almost entirely new to science, populated by unfamiliar genes that have never before been documented in viral research.

The so-called Yaravirus, named after Yara – or Iara, a water-queen figure in Brazilian mythology – was recovered from Lake Pampulha, an artificial lake in the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte.

While Yaravirus (Yaravirus brasiliensis) may be no supernatural siren, the virus could prove to be just as mysterious as the water nymph of legend.

That's because the virus constitutes "a new lineage of amoebal virus with a puzzling origin and phylogeny," the research team explains in a new pre-print paper about the discovery.

Two of the senior members of that team – virologists Bernard La Scola from Aix-Marseille University in France, and Jônatas S. Abrahão from Brazil's Federal University of Minas Gerais – ought to know what they're talking about.

Two years ago, the pair helped to discover another water-dwelling viral novelty: Tupanvirus, a giant virus found in extreme aquatic habitats.

More:
https://www.sciencealert.com/mysterious-virus-discovered-in-brazil-has-no-known-genes-scientists-can-identify?perpetual=yes&limitstart=1

Science:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/122868036

[Sea Turtle]

1. Amazing

As much as we know about our planet, there is so much more that we have yet to learn. The world is so complex and amazing.