ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile: Herpesviridae 2021

• Published in: Journal of general virology Vol. 102; no. 10
• Main Authors: Gatherer, Derek, Depledge, Daniel P., Hartley, Carol A., Szpara, Moriah L., Vaz, Paola K., Benkő, Mária, Brandt, Curtis R., Bryant, Neil A., Dastjerdi, Akbar, Doszpoly, Andor, Gompels, Ursula A., Inoue, Naoki, Jarosinski, Keith W., Kaul, Rajeev, Lacoste, Vincent, Norberg, Peter, Origgi, Francesco C., Orton, Richard J., Pellett, Philip E., Schmid, D. Scott, Spatz, Stephen J., Stewart, James P., Trimpert, Jakob, Waltzek, Thomas B., Davison, Andrew J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Microbiology Society 01.01.2021
• Subjects: Animals; Biodiversity; Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology; Evolution, Molecular; Genome, Viral; Herpesviridae; Herpesviridae - classification; Herpesviridae - genetics; Herpesviridae - physiology; Herpesviridae - ultrastructure; Herpesviridae Infections - veterinary; Herpesviridae Infections - virology; Host Adaptation; ICTV Report; ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profiles; Life Sciences; Microbiology and Parasitology; Microbiology in the Medical Area; Mikrobiologi inom det medicinska området; Systematics, Phylogenetics and taxonomy; taxonomy; Virion - chemistry; Virion - ultrastructure; Virology; Virus Latency; Virus Replication; ICTV Report; Herpesviridae; taxonomy
• ISSN: 0022-1317; 1465-2099; 1465-2099
• DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001673

Members of the family Herpesviridae have enveloped, spherical virions with characteristic complex structures consisting of symmetrical and non-symmetrical components. The linear, double-stranded DNA genomes of 125–241 kbp contain 70–170 genes, of which 43 have been inherited from an ancestral herpesvirus. In general, herpesviruses have coevolved with and are highly adapted to their hosts, which comprise many mammalian, avian and reptilian species. Following primary infection, they are able to establish lifelong latent infection, during which there is limited viral gene expression. Severe disease is usually observed only in the foetus, the very young, the immunocompromised or following infection of an alternative host. This is a summary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) Report on the family Herpesviridae , which is available at ictv.global/report/herpesviridae .