Year: 2022

"SELFISH ELEMENTS make key contributions to evolutionary transitions at least at two levels. First, the parasite–host arms race leads to increased organizational complexity of biological systems, i.e. serving as a catalyst of evolutionary transitions. Second, viruses and mobile elements contribute specific genes that play major roles in the emergence of coherent wholes at a new level of complexity." https://lnkd.in/daxmUKR View in LinkedIn

VIRUS CLASSIFICATION, a lovely chart summarizing the world of viruses. Only 22 families of viruses have been described. Eight are DNA viruses, the remaining 14 are RNA viruses. https://lnkd.in/duMh5jV View in LinkedIn

VIRUSES, humans as descendants of these creatures. Interview with Dr Villarreal. https://youtu.be/3Ms04x6MvMY View in LinkedIn

ADDICTION MODULES. "Here, I present a general model for the role such viruses play in the evolution of host symbiosis. By considering how virus mixtures can participate in addiction modules, I provide a functional explanation for persistence of virus derived genetic ‘junk’ in their host genomic habitats." https://lnkd.in/d64vzSy View in LinkedIn

PROTECTION CAUSES PERSISTENCE. "Lytic viruses were thought to kill the most numerous host (i.e., kill the winner). But persisting viruses/defectives can also protect against viruses, especially in a ubiquitous virosphere. In 1991, Yarmolinsky et al. discovered the addiction modules of P1 phage, in which opposing toxic and protective functions stabilize persistence." https://lnkd.in/dfuhiME View in LinkedIn

GROUP IDENTITY. "I proposed that lytic and persisting cryptic virus also provide addiction modules that promote group identity. In eukaryotes (and the RNA world), a distinct RNA virus–host relationship exists. Retrovirurses/retroposons are major contributors to eukaryotic genomes." http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.12565/full View in LinkedIn

VIRUS REMAINS DRIVE COMPLEXITY. "Eukaryotic complexity appears to be mostly mediated by regulatory complexity involving noncoding retroposon-derived RNA." http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.12565/full View in LinkedIn

QUASISPECIES. "RNA viruses evolve via quasispecies, which contain cooperating, minority, and even opposing RNA types." http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.12565/full View in LinkedIn

STEM-LOOP RNA. "Quasispecies can also demonstrate group preclusion (e.g., hepatitis C). Stem-loop RNA domains are found in long terminal repeats (and viral RNA) and mediate viral regulation/identity. Thus, stem-loop RNAs may be ancestral regulators." http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.12565/full View in LinkedIn

GROUP IDENTITY. "I consider the RNA (ribozyme) world scenario from the perspective of addiction modules and cooperating quasispecies (i.e., subfunctional agents that establish group identity). Such an RNA collective resembles a “gang” but requires the simultaneous emergence of endonuclease, ligase, cooperative catalysis, group identity, and history markers (RNA). I call such a collective a gangen (pathway to gang) needed for life to emerge." http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.12565/full View in LinkedIn