ICTV Report on the dsDNA virus family Sphaerolipoviridae
Members of the family Sphaerolipoviridae have non-enveloped tailless icosahedral virions with an internal membrane (Table 1.Sphaerolipoviridae). The genome is a linear double-stranded DNA of about 30 kbp with inverted terminal repeats and covalently bound terminal proteins. The capsid has a pseudo triangulation T = 28 dextro symmetry and is built of two major capsid protein types. The five-fold vertices have penton protein and spike complexes. Several membrane protein types are embedded in the internal membrane. All viruses infect halophilic archaea in the class Halobacteria (phylum Euryarchaeota). Sphaerolipoviruses have a narrow host range and a lytic life cycle.