Half of the 140,000 viruses found in the human intestine turned out to be unidentified new species
The pandemic of the new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has led to a lot of virus research, and the understanding of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has deepened compared to the beginning. However, new research has revealed that new viruses exist not only in the outside world but also in the human body. When researchers examined the viruses in the human intestine, more than half of the 140,000 viruses found were unidentified new species.
Scientists Find 140,000 Virus Species in The Human Gut, And Most Are Unknown
Scientists identify over 140,000 virus species in the human gut, half of which are new to science – Wellcome Sanger Institute
https://www.sanger.ac.uk/news_item/scientists-identify-over-140000-virus-species-in-the-human-gut-half-of-which-are-new-to-science/
Massive expansion of human gut bacteriophage diversity: Cell
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674 (21) 00072-6
The new study was conducted by the European Bioinformatics Institute. There seems to be something wrong with hearing that 'a large number of unknown viruses have been found,' but biochemist Alexandra Almeida, who conducted the study, said, 'Not all viruses are harmful and are in the gut. It's important to know the fact that it represents the entire ecosystem of the virus, 'he said, calling attention not to give a false impression.
In this study, analysis was performed based on the metagenomics of the intestinal microbiota of 28,000 people collected from 28 countries around the world and the reference genome of 2900 in which intestinal bacteria were cultured. Metagenomic samples were collected from healthy people, especially those without the disease.
As a result of the analysis, it was found that 142,809 kinds of viruses exist in the human intestine and are composed of bacteriophages that infect bacteria and archaea.
Bacteriophage and bacteria present in the intestine are thought to have a major impact on human intestinal health.
The effects of bacteriophage on humans have not been well understood until now due to the limited understanding of bacteriophage itself. However, with the advancement of metagenomic analysis technology, the diversity of bacteriophage existing in the human body has become clear.
The diversity of bacteriophage revealed in this study will be shown in a database called 'Gut Phage Database', and it will be a new step to understand the diversity in the intestine. Is watching.
'A comprehensive database of high-quality phage genomes allows us to analyze human in vivo viral populations with better resolution, associating specific viral strains with microbiota phenotypes. I will make it possible. '
In response to the research results, Trevor Lawley of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, which is famous for genomic research, said, 'This high-quality and large-scale human intestinal virus catalog is ecological and evolutionary for future virus research. It was provided at the right time as a blueprint for the analysis. '
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