title: Virocell Metabolism: Metabolic Innovations During Host-Virus Interactions in the Ocean.
abstract: Marine viruses are considered to be major ecological, evolutionary, and biogeochemical drivers of the marine environment, responsible for nutrient recycling and determining species composition. Viruses can re-shape their host's metabolic network during infection, generating the virocell-a unique metabolic state that supports their specific requirement. Here we discuss the concept of 'virocell metabolism' and its formation by rewiring of host-encoded metabolic networks, or by introducing virus-encoded auxiliary metabolic genes which provide the virocell with novel metabolic capabilities. The ecological role of marine viruses is commonly assessed by their relative abundance and phylogenetic diversity, lacking the ability to assess the dynamics of active viral infection. The new ability to define a unique metabolic state of the virocell will expand the current virion-centric approaches in order to quantify the impact of marine viruses on microbial food webs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Shilo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rosenwasser
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Carmit
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ziv
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
authors.forename: Shiri Graff van
authors.initials: SGV
authors.lastname: Creveld
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel. Electronic address: assaf.vardi@weizmann.ac.il.
authors.forename: Assaf
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vardi
mesh_terms: D004267:DNA Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020387:Food Chain; D000072139:Giant Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D058087:Haptophyta / Q000648:ultrastructure / Q000821:virology; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways; D010802:Phylogeny; D010839:Phytoplankton / Q000821:virology; D012623:Seawater / Q000821:virology*; D013559:Symbiosis; D014777:Virus Diseases
keywords: auxiliary metabolic genes; cyanophages; host–virus coevolution; large dsDNA viruses; marine viruses; metabolic networks; virocell phytoplankton