Giant Marseillevirus highlights the role of amoebae as a melting pot in emergence of chimeric microorganisms
Using Roche 454 sequencing, mass spectrometry, and other methods, a team of French and American researchers isolated and characterized a giant virus from inside A. polyphaga cells collected from a Paris water cooling tower. Dubbed the Marseillevirus for its place of discovery, the virus contains sequences similar to those found in a range of other organisms — from bacteria and other viruses to eukaryotes. Based on the finding and others before it, the researchers noted, it seems amoebas are a hotspot for incubating previously unknown viral forms.
Genome-wide association study in a Chinese Han population identifies nine new susceptibility loci for systemic lupus erythematosus
Han et al., Nature Genetics
In a recent study, Chinese and Singaporean researchers assessed almost half a million SNPs in more than 2,200 Han Chinese individuals. In the process, they identified dozens of candidate SNPs. After verifying their initial findings in two Chinese validation groups, the team was left with 16 lupus-associated loci, including nine loci not linked to SLE in the past.
