Studies have revealed cross-species transmission of primate lysovirus.

Oct 9, 2020 /--- continues to be threatened by viral diseases such as Ebola, Zika and coronavirus.
outbreaks of this emerging/re-emerging virus may be caused by cross-species viruses transmitted from wild animals to humans.
(Photo: www.pixabay.com) In order to spread across species, the new host must be exposed to the virus in the old host.
, the virus gets certain mutations that may be beneficial for replication in the new host.
, these viruses can adapt to the environment in the new host by continuing to spread in the new host.
, however, at the beginning of this process, the virus must overcome the "species barriers" that prevent the virus from spreading across species.
mammals, including humans, have an "introviral immunity" mechanism that has evolved enough to create species barriers to virus transmission.
HIV-1 is most likely to originate from the associated pregenitor HIV-1 in chimpanzees and gorillas, which is a pathogen of AIDS, and is likely to have originated from related pregenitors found in chimpanzees (SIVcpz) and gorillas (SIVgor) about 100 years ago.
addition, SIVgor is most likely to occur through SIVcpz's cross-species jumps from chimpanzees to gorillas.
, however, it is not clear how primate lysovirus spread successfully among different species.
to limit the spread of virvirus across species, cell "in-house immunity" including the APOBEC3 protein may inhibit lysovirus replication.
, in contrast, primate lyrovirus in this evolutionary "arms race" has acquired its own "weapon", the viral infection factor (Vif), to combat the antiviral effects of the limiting factor.
a team of researchers at the Institute of Medical Sciences (IMSUT) of the University of Tokyo suggests that the gorilla APUBEC3G may play a role in inhibiting SIVcpz replication.
interestingly, the team demonstrated that the amino acid replacement M16E in SIVcpz Vif was sufficient to overcome the limitations of gorilla AOBEC3G mediated.
"To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to suggest that the APOBEC3 protein of great apes may potentially limit the cross-species transmission of the great ape virus and how lysovirus can overcome this species barrier."
, this is the first study to shed light on molecular mechanisms.
great ape virus can spread across species.
," said Keith Sato, an associate professor in the Department of Systemic Virology at IMSUT's Department of Infectious Disease Control.
(bioon.com) Source: Molecular mechanism of cross-species transmission of primate lentiviruses Source: Yusuke Nakano et al. A role for gorilla APOBEC3G in shaping lentivirus evolution including transmission to humans, PLOS Pathogens (2020). DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1008812.