Virus–Host Coevolution with a Focus on Animal and Human DNA Viruses

• Published in: Journal of molecular evolution Vol. 88; no. 1; pp. 41 - 56
• Main Authors: Kaján, Győző L., Doszpoly, Andor, Tarján, Zoltán László, Vidovszky, Márton Z., Papp, Tibor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.01.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - genetics; Adenoviruses; Animal Genetics and Genomics; Animals; Biological Evolution; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Cell Biology; Coevolution; Continuous coating; Deoxyribonucleic acid; DNA; DNA viruses; DNA Viruses - genetics; DNA Viruses - pathogenicity; Evolution, Molecular; Evolutionary Biology; Host Microbial Interactions - genetics; Host Microbial Interactions - physiology; Humans; Life Sciences; Literature reviews; Microbiology; Nuclei (cytology); Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Sciences; Review; Viruses; Viruses - genetics; Viruses - pathogenicity; Virus; Endogenous viral elements; Antiviral defence; Coevolution
• ISSN: 0022-2844; 1432-1432; 1432-1432
• DOI: 10.1007/s00239-019-09913-4

Viruses have been infecting their host cells since the dawn of life, and this extremely long-term coevolution gave rise to some surprising consequences for the entire tree of life. It is hypothesised that viruses might have contributed to the formation of the first cellular life form, or that even the eukaryotic cell nucleus originates from an infection by a coated virus. The continuous struggle between viruses and their hosts to maintain at least a constant fitness level led to the development of an unceasing arms race, where weapons are often shuttled between the participants. In this literature review we try to give a short insight into some general consequences or traits of virus–host coevolution, and after this we zoom in to the viral clades of adenoviruses, herpesviruses, nucleo-cytoplasmic large DNA viruses, polyomaviruses and, finally, circoviruses.