Family: Picornaviridae
Genus: Kunsagivirus
Distinguishing features
The genus is distinguished on the basis of genetic characters.
Virion
Morphology
No details are available on the morphology of virions.
Nucleic acid
Genome (Boros et al., 2013, Yinda et al., 2017) and (Buechler et al. 2017 (unpublished): c. 7,092–7,429 nt (5′-UTR: >393–532 nt; ORF: 6,657–6,747 nt; 3′-UTR: 25–180 nt). The 5′-UTR contains a type IV-B IRES. The 3′-UTR of members of the species Kunsagivirus A are the shortest of picornaviruses, at 25 nt. The location of the cre has not been identified.
Genome organization and replication
Genome layout:
VPg+5′-UTRIRES-IVB-[1AB-1C-1D-2A1npgp/(2A2npgp/2A3npgp/)2A4-2B-2C/3A-3B-3C-3D]-3′-UTR-poly(A)
The deduced polyprotein is of 2,248 amino acids. There is no L protein. 1AB remains uncleaved. 2A1 is a short polypeptide with an NPG↓P motif, bakunsaviruses have three 2A proteins with NPG↓P motifs, and another 2A protein has unknown function.
Biology
No virus has been isolated. Viral RNA of kunsagivirus A1 was detected in faeces of an apparently healthy European roller (Coracias garrulus), of kunsagivirus B1 (bat kunsagivirus) in faeces of the fruit bat Eidolon helvum, and of kunsagivirus C1 (bakunsavirus) in wild baboons (Papio cynocephalus).
Derivation of names
Kunsagivirus: from the name of part of the Great Hungarian Plain – "Kunság" – where the first samples were collected
Species demarcation criteria
Members of a species of the genus Kunsagivirus share a common genome organization.
The divergence (number of differences per site between sequences) between members of different Kunsagivirus species is < 0.51 for P1 and < 0.52 for 3CD.