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Polydnaviruses: Nature's Genetic Engineers.

Summary
Publication Type
Journal Article
Abstract

Virus-host associations are usually viewed as parasitic, but several studies in recent years have reported examples of viruses that benefit host organisms. The Polydnaviridae are of particular interest because these viruses are all obligate mutualists of insects called parasitoid wasps. Parasitoids develop during their immature stages by feeding inside the body of other insects, which serve as their hosts. Polydnaviruses are vertically transmitted as proviruses through the germ line of wasps but also function as gene delivery vectors that wasps rely upon to genetically manipulate the hosts they parasitize. Here we review the evolutionary origin of polydnaviruses, the organization and function of their genomes, and some of their roles in parasitism.

Citation
Strand MR, Burke GR. Polydnaviruses: Nature's Genetic Engineers.. Annual review of virology. 2014 Nov; 1(1):333-54.
Publication Date
2014 Nov
DOI
10.1146/annurev-virology-031413-085451
Cross Reference
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