title: Oysters as hot spots for mimivirus isolation.
abstract: Viruses are ubiquitous organisms, but their role in the ecosystem and their prevalence are still poorly understood. Mimiviruses are extremely complex and large DNA viruses. Although metagenomic studies have suggested that members of the family Mimiviridae are abundant in oceans, there is a lack of information about the association of mimiviruses with marine organisms. In this work, we demonstrate by molecular and virological methods that oysters are excellent sources for mimiviruses isolation. Our data not only provide new information about the biology of these viruses but also raise questions regarding the role of oyster consumption as a putative source of mimivirus infection in humans.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Vírus, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Kétyllen R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: Paulo P V M
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Boratto
authors.forename: Felipe P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.forename: Lorena C F
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Fábio P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Dornas
authors.forename: Mariana R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Pilotto
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: La Scola
authors.forename: Gabriel M F
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Almeida
authors.forename: Erna G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Kroon
authors.forename: Jônatas S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Abrahão
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004266:DNA Virus Infections / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology*; D005814:Genes, Viral; D014644:Genetic Variation; D016679:Genome, Viral; D006801:Humans; D056686:Mimiviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010125:Ostreidae / Q000821:virology*; D010802:Phylogeny