ICTV Report

Family: Rudiviridae (Interim Report)

This is a summary page created by the ICTV Report Editors using information from associated Taxonomic Proposals and the Master Species List.

Edited by: Mart Krupovic
Posted: April 2023, updated December 2024

Summary

The family Rudiviridae includes lytic, double-stranded DNA viruses infecting hyperthermophilic archaea of the order Sulfolobales (Table 1 Rudiviridae). The family was established in 1997 (MSL16) and assigned to the realm Adnaviria in 2021 (Master Species List 36).

Table 1 Rudiviridae. Characteristics of members of the family Rudiviridae.

CharacteristicDescription
ExampleSulfolobus islandicus rod-shaped virus 2 (AJ344259), species Icerudivirus hveragerdiense, genus Icerudivirus
VirionFilamentous, non-enveloped particle, nucleoprotein core with homodimeric major capsid proteins, terminal fibers (Figure 1 Rudiviridae)
GenomeLinear, double-stranded DNA genome of 20–36 kbp (Figure 2 Rudiviridae)
Host rangeHyperthermophilic archaea of the order Sulfolobales
TaxonomyRealm Adnaviria, kingdom Zilligvirae, phylum Taleaviricota, class Tokiviricetes, order Ligamenvirales: 7 genera and 17 species (Figure 3 Rudiviridae)
Rudiviridae virion
Figure 1 Rudiviridae. Electron micrograph of virions of Sulfolobus islandicus rod-shaped virus 5 stained with 2% uranyl acetate. Scale bar 100 nm. Image from Bautista et al,. (2017) "Differentiation and structure in Sulfolobus islandicus rod-shaped virus populations" Viruses 9: 120 used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 
Rudiviridae genome
Figure 2 Rudiviridae. Genome organisation of Sulfolobus islandicus rod-shaped virus 2, a member of the family Rudiviridae. Boxes indicate open reading frames as annotated on GenBank accession AJ344259.
Rudiviridae taxonomy
Figure 3 Rudiviridae. Taxonomy of the family Rudiviridae.

Derivation of name

Rudiviridae: from the Latin rudi, meaning "small rod".