What is it about?
Our study has shown that even healthy individuals carry persistent DNA viruses in their organs, acquired early in life and present throughout their lifetime. We have created an atlas that maps out which viruses are present in which organs, revealing a unique 'virome' - a collection of viruses - in each part of the body. This discovery challenges the traditional view of organs as sterile and underscores the importance of understanding the role of these viruses in human health and disease.
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Why is it important?
In order to survive, viruses must tweak the cells that host them and the immune system. This can have profound long-term consequences on how our body works and its ability to respond to different stressors. The effects can be good or bad, but we know really little in general about them. Knowing what viruses people normally carry and what they are doing in our body can help us prevent or treat diseases.
Perspectives
Viruses shape who we are and how we react to other infections. I hope this article brings persistent viruses into the spotlight. These viruses live within us for life (contrary to for example covid 19), and we need to study the symbiotic balance between a life of interactions that are shaping our health.
Dr. Maria Fernanda Perdomo
University of Helsinki
The discovery that the DNA of potentially pathogenic viruses exists within our internal organs challenges the notion that certain areas of the human body are completely sterile. This revelation prompts important new research inquiries, including what are the beneficial effects of this normal tissue virome or whether alterations in the quality of the virus collection might play a role in the development of chronic illnesses.
Dr Lari Pyöriä
University of Helsinki
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Unmasking the tissue-resident eukaryotic DNA virome in humans, Nucleic Acids Research, March 2023, Oxford University Press (OUP),
DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad199.
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