Ocean water samples provide treasure trove of RNA virus data, new study of organisms in the sea identifies 5.500 new species, expanding ecological research possibilities
At least 5.500 new virus species have been found in oceans around the world in a major new discovery, prompting researchers to propose more categories to correctly classify their diversity.
Ocean water samples collected around the world have produced a wealth of new data on RNA viruses, best known for diseases like the common cold and the recent COVID-19 outbreak. This broadens the possibilities for ecological research, reshaping our understanding of how these small but significant submicroscopic particles evolved.
By combining machine learning analyzes with traditional evolutionary trees, an international team of researchers has identified Ben 5.500 new species of RNA viruses.
"There is so much new diversity here - and an entire phylum, the Taraviricota, has been found throughout the oceans, which suggests they are ecologically important," said lead author Matthew Sullivan, a professor of microbiology at Ohio. State University.
RNA viruses are clearly important in our world, but we usually only study a small fraction of them, the few hundred that harm humans, plants and animals.
@Science
"We wanted to study them systematically on a very large scale and explore an environment where no one had thoroughly investigated, we were lucky because virtually every species was new."
The study just appeared in the journal Science.
Knowing more about the diversity and abundance of viruses in the world's oceans will help explain the role of marine microbes in ocean adaptation to climate change.
Source: Science, Ohio State University
