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Boratto PVM, Serafim MSM, Witt ASA, Crispim APC, de Azevedo BL, de Souza GAP, de Aquino ILM, Machado TB, Queiroz VF, Rodrigues RAL, Bergier I, Cortines JR, de Farias ST, dos Santos RN, Campos FS, Franco AC, Abrahão JS. A Brief History of Giant Viruses’ Studies in Brazilian Biomes. Viruses 2022; 14:v14020191. [PMID: 35215784 PMCID: PMC8875882 DOI: 10.3390/v14020191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Revised: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/15/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Almost two decades after the isolation of the first amoebal giant viruses, indubitably the discovery of these entities has deeply affected the current scientific knowledge on the virosphere. Much has been uncovered since then: viruses can now acknowledge complex genomes and huge particle sizes, integrating remarkable evolutionary relationships that date as early as the emergence of life on the planet. This year, a decade has passed since the first studies on giant viruses in the Brazilian territory, and since then biomes of rare beauty and biodiversity (Amazon, Atlantic forest, Pantanal wetlands, Cerrado savannas) have been explored in the search for giant viruses. From those unique biomes, novel viral entities were found, revealing never before seen genomes and virion structures. To celebrate this, here we bring together the context, inspirations, and the major contributions of independent Brazilian research groups to summarize the accumulated knowledge about the diversity and the exceptionality of some of the giant viruses found in Brazil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulo Victor M. Boratto
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Mateus Sá M. Serafim
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Amanda Stéphanie A. Witt
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Ana Paula C. Crispim
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Bruna Luiza de Azevedo
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Gabriel Augusto P. de Souza
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Isabella Luiza M. de Aquino
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Talita B. Machado
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Victória F. Queiroz
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Rodrigo A. L. Rodrigues
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
| | - Ivan Bergier
- Embrapa Pantanal, Corumbá 79320-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil;
| | - Juliana Reis Cortines
- Departamento de Virologia, Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-590, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;
| | - Savio Torres de Farias
- Laboratório de Genética Evolutiva Paulo Leminsk, Departamento de Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa 58050-085, Paraíba, Brazil;
| | - Raíssa Nunes dos Santos
- Laboratório de Virologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90.050-170, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (R.N.d.S.); (F.S.C.); (A.C.F.)
| | - Fabrício Souza Campos
- Laboratório de Virologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90.050-170, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (R.N.d.S.); (F.S.C.); (A.C.F.)
| | - Ana Cláudia Franco
- Laboratório de Virologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90.050-170, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; (R.N.d.S.); (F.S.C.); (A.C.F.)
| | - Jônatas S. Abrahão
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Minas Gerais, Brazil; (P.V.M.B.); (M.S.M.S.); (A.S.A.W.); (A.P.C.C.); (B.L.d.A.); (G.A.P.d.S.); (I.L.M.d.A.); (T.B.M.); (V.F.Q.); (R.A.L.R.)
- Correspondence:
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Burton-Smith RN, Murata K. Cryo-Electron Microscopy of the Giant Viruses. Microscopy (Oxf) 2021; 70:477-486. [PMID: 34490462 DOI: 10.1093/jmicro/dfab036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Revised: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
High resolution study of the giant viruses presents one of the latest challenges in cryo-electron microscopy of viruses. Too small for light microscopy, but too large for easy study at high resolution by electron microscopy, they range in size from ~0.2-2 μm, from high symmetry icosahedral viruses such as Paramecium burseria Chlorella virus 1 to asymmetric forms like Tupanvirus or Pithovirus. To attain high resolution, two strategies exist to study these large viruses by cryo-EM: firstly, increasing the acceleration voltage of the electron microscope to improve sample penetration and overcome the limitations imposed by electro-optical physics at lower voltages, and secondly the method of "block-based reconstruction" pioneered by Michael G. Rossmann and his collaborators, which resolves the latter limitation through an elegant leveraging of high symmetry, but cannot overcome sample penetration limitations. In addition, more recent advances in both computational capacity and image processing also yield assistance in studying the giant viruses. Especially, the inclusion of Ewald sphere correction can provide large improvements in attainable resolutions for 300 kV electron microscopes. Despite this, the study of giant viruses remains a significant challenge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raymond N Burton-Smith
- Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems (ExCELLS), National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Aichi, Japan.,National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Aichi, Japan
| | - Kazuyoshi Murata
- Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems (ExCELLS), National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Aichi, Japan.,National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Aichi, Japan.,Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI), Okazaki, Aichi, Japan
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Kushner DB, Pekosz A. Virology in the Classroom: Current Approaches and Challenges to Undergraduate- and Graduate-Level Virology Education. Annu Rev Virol 2021; 8:537-558. [PMID: 34242063 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-virology-091919-080047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The pervasive effects of the current coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic are but one reason for educators to refocus their efforts on virology teaching. Additionally, it is critical to understand how viruses function and to elucidate the relationship between virus and host. An understanding of current virology education may improve pedagogical approaches for educating our students and trainees. Faculty who teach undergraduate microbiology indicate that approximately 10% of the course content features viruses; stand-alone virology courses are infrequently offered to undergraduates. Fortunately, virology taught to undergraduates includes foundational material; several approaches for delivery of lecture- and lab-based content exist. At the graduate education level, there is growing appreciation that an emphasis on logic, reasoning, inference, and statistics must be reintroduced into the curriculum to create a generation of scientists who have a greater capacity for creativity and innovation. Educators also need to remove barriers to student success, at all levels of education. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Virology, Volume 8 is September 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- David B Kushner
- Department of Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania 17013, USA;
| | - Andrew Pekosz
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA
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de Souza GAP, Queiroz VF, Lima MT, de Sousa Reis EV, Coelho LFL, Abrahão JS. Virus goes viral: an educational kit for virology classes. Virol J 2020; 17:13. [PMID: 32005257 PMCID: PMC6995199 DOI: 10.1186/s12985-020-1291-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Viruses are the most numerous entities on Earth and have also been central to many episodes in the history of humankind. As the study of viruses progresses further and further, there are several limitations in transferring this knowledge to undergraduate and high school students. This deficiency is due to the difficulty in designing hands-on lessons that allow students to better absorb content, given limited financial resources and facilities, as well as the difficulty of exploiting viral particles, due to their small dimensions. The development of tools for teaching virology is important to encourage educators to expand on the covered topics and connect them to recent findings. Discoveries, such as giant DNA viruses, have provided an opportunity to explore aspects of viral particles in ways never seen before. Coupling these novel findings with techniques already explored by classical virology, including visualization of cytopathic effects on permissive cells, may represent a new way for teaching virology. This work aimed to develop a slide microscope kit that explores giant virus particles and some aspects of animal virus interaction with cell lines, with the goal of providing an innovative approach to virology teaching. METHODS Slides were produced by staining, with crystal violet, purified giant viruses and BSC-40 and Vero cells infected with viruses of the genera Orthopoxvirus, Flavivirus, and Alphavirus. Slides with amoebae infected with different species of giant viruses and stained with hemacolor reagents were also produced. RESULTS Staining of the giant viruses allowed better visualization of the viral particles, and this technique highlights the diversity in morphology and sizes among them. Hemacolor staining enabled visualization of viral factories in amoebae, and the staining of infected BSC-40 and Vero cell monolayers with crystal violet highlights plaque-forming units. CONCLUSIONS This kit was used in practical virology classes for the Biological Sciences course (UFMG, Brazil), and it will soon be made available at a low-cost for elementary school teachers in institutions that have microscopes. We hope this tool will foster an inspiring learning environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Augusto Pires de Souza
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Victória Fulgêncio Queiroz
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Maurício Teixeira Lima
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Erik Vinicius de Sousa Reis
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Luiz Felipe Leomil Coelho
- Laboratório de Vacinas, Departamento de Microbiologia e Imunologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal de Alfenas, Rua Gabriel Monteiro da Silva, 700, Alfenas, 37130-001, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Jônatas Santos Abrahão
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos, 6627, Belo Horizonte, 31270-901, Brazil.
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