For several decades, biologists have debated whether viruses are present on an ongoing basis in the digestive tract in humans. A recent study showed that half crAssphage virus lives in the gut affects one of the most common types of intestinal bacteria Bacteroidetes. This is a type of bacteria, the researchers believe, associated with obesity, diabetes and other diseases, report scientists in an article in the journal Nature Communications.
The discovery was made by Robert Edwards, professor bioinformatics from the University of San Diego. With the invitee researcher Bas Dutilh they used results from previous studies of viruses in the intestines, and tried to find new varieties of infectious agents.
In fecal DNA samples taken from 12 different volunteers, they revealed a special cluster of viral DNA with a length of about 97 thousand pairs grounds. All viral DNAs were very similar to each other. When Edwards and his colleagues checked the new data with a database of all known viruses then realized that before them something completely new.
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Then the researchers tried to find the virus in the databases. project of the National Institute of Health “Microbiome human “(Project Human Microbiome), which also did not give any results. Despite the complete lack of information on infectious agent in modern databases, mysterious virus DNA more often met by researchers in fecal samples volunteers.
To prove the reality of the new viral DNA, virologists used a method known as DNA amplification. Thus one could find the virus in the original samples used to creating a database of NCDs.
“It was a brand new virus. And it is present in half people in the world, although so far no one knew anything about him. At all, it’s not unusual for us to discover a new virus. Unusual that it’s so widespread, and we haven’t noticed, “Edwards said in a press release.
Scientists believe that the prevalence of the virus indicates antiquity of this variety of infectious agents. Judging by everything, the first representatives appeared around the same time, when the first people.
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It is also interesting that some proteins in crAssphage are common with those that are present in already well-studied viruses. it allowed the Edwards team to determine what the new virus is one of the bacteriophages that infect bacteria and multiply inside them.
Conclusions were drawn using innovative methods bioinformatics. The results of the analysis showed that this particular bacteriophage propagates by infection of a common type an intestinal bacterium known as Bacteriodetes.
Representatives of the type Bacteroidetes live in part of the intestine, located near the end. They are believed to play an important role. in stimulating human obesity. What participation in this crAssphage viruses are accepted in the process, it will become clear from subsequent research.
So far, little is known about the bacteriophages of crAssphage. Researchers are working on defining a distribution method. virus, but so far they only managed to exclude the probability inheritance of the virus from parents, since in newborns no infectious agents were found.
Subsequent study of a new virus will not only make it better understand the processes that occur in the intestines of most people. IN further awareness of the role of crAssphage viruses will allow treatment diabetes, obesity and gastroenterological diseases of various kinds, scientists are sure. And in the distant future, Edwards believes, based on intestinal virus treatment methods can be developed for personalized medicine.
DNA viruses
