Family: Picornaviridae
Genus: Parabovirus
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Genome (W.-P. Guo and Y.-Z. Zhang, unpublished) (Wu et al., 2018): up to 8,315 nt (5′-UTR: up to 731 nt; ORF: 7,167–7,491 nt; 3′-UTR: 93–106 nt). The location of the cre has not been identified.
Genome organization and replication
Genome layout:
VPg+5′-UTRIRES-II-[L-1A-1B-1C-1D/2Apro-2B-2C/3A-3B-3C-3D]-3′-UTR-poly(A)
The deduced polyprotein ranges from 2,389 to 2,4971 aa. The L protein has unknown function. The 2A protein has been proposed to be a chymotrypsin-like protease.
Biology
No virus has been isolated. Viral RNA was detected in faecal samples of Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus), striped field mice (Apodemus agrarius), Chevrier's field mice (Apodemus chevrieri), grey red-backed voles (Myodes rufocanus), Chinese white-bellied rats (Niviventer confucianus) and the Chinese striped hamster (Cricetulus barabensis) in China. Four types of Parabovirus A are distinguished by means of phylogenetic analysis.
Derivation of names
Parabovirus--: derived from para (Greek παρά, beside, by) and rabovirus (rabo-: from rat-borne).
Species demarcation criteria
Members of a species of genus Parabovirus:
- share a common genome organization
- are less than 30% divergent in the polyprotein aa sequence
- are less than 35% divergent in the P1 aa sequence
- are less than 30% divergent in the 2C + 3CD aa sequence