Pandora challenges the meaning of life

• Autores: Andy Coghlan
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 2927, 2013, pág. 14
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • They are so different from existing life forms, Pandora viruses might as well be extraterrestrial. Not only are they huge but more than 90% of their genes are new to science. Dubbed Pandora because they challenge so many of humans' assumptions, two new species have been discovered. Both are egg-shaped and at a micrometer long, so big they can be seen through a standard lab microscope. The one with the largest genome, Pandoravirus salinus, has 2,556 genes, twice that of the previous record-holder, mimivirus. The other, P. dulcis, has 1,502 genes. Most common viruses have fewer than 10.