| Mimivirus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Mimivirus with two satellite Sputnik virophages (arrows) [1] | |
Virus classification 
| |
| (unranked): | Virus |
| Realm: | Varidnaviria |
| Kingdom: | Bamfordvirae |
| Phylum: | Nucleocytoviricota |
| Class: | Megaviricetes |
| Order: | Imitervirales |
| Family: | Mimiviridae |
| Genus: | Mimivirus |
| Species[citation needed] | |
Mimivirus is a genus of giant viruses, in the family Mimiviridae. Amoeba serve as their natural hosts.[2][3] This genus contains a single identified species named Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus (APMV). It also refers to a group of phylogenetically related large viruses.[4]
In colloquial speech, APMV is more commonly referred to as just "mimivirus". Mimivirus, short for "mimicking microbe", is so called to reflect its large size and apparent Gram-staining properties.[5]
Mimivirus has a large and complex genome compared with most other viruses. Until 2013, when a larger virus Pandoravirus was described, it had the largest capsid diameter of all known viruses.[6]
- ^ Duponchel, S. and Fischer, M.G. (2019) "Viva lavidaviruses! Five features of virophages that parasitize giant DNA viruses". PLoS pathogens, 15(3). doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1007592.
Material was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
- ^ "Viral Zone". ExPASy. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ ICTV. "Virus Taxonomy: 2014 Release". Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ Ghedin, E.; Claverie, J. (August 2005). "Mimivirus relatives in the Sargasso sea". Virology Journal. 2: 62. arXiv:q-bio/0504014. Bibcode:2005q.bio.....4014G. doi:10.1186/1743-422X-2-62. PMC 1215527. PMID 16105173.
- ^ Wessner, D. R. (2010). "Discovery of the Giant Mimivirus". Nature Education. 3 (9): 61. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
- ^ "World's biggest virus found in sea off Chile". London: Telegraph UK. 11 October 2011. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
