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Marine viruses are defined by their habitat as viruses that are found in marine environments, that is, in the saltwater of seas or oceans or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. Viruses are small infectious agents that can only replicate inside the living cells of a host organism , because they need the replication machinery of the host to ...
Viruses are the main agents responsible for the rapid destruction of harmful algal blooms, [40] which often kill other marine life. [54] The number of viruses in the oceans decreases further offshore and deeper into the water, where there are fewer host organisms. [16]
Viral shunt was first described in 1999 by Steven W. Wilhelm and Curtis A. Suttle. [6] Their original paper has since been cited over 1000 times. [7] For his contributions to understanding of viral roles in marine ecosystems, Suttle has received numerous awards, including being named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, receiving the A.G. Huntsman Award for Excellence in Marine Science ...
Marine life, sea life or ocean life is the collective ecological communities that encompass all aquatic animals, plants, algae, fungi, protists, single-celled microorganisms and associated viruses living in the saline water of marine habitats, either the sea water of marginal seas and oceans, or the brackish water of coastal wetlands, lagoons ...
A red sea sponge capable of filtering marine viruses. [23] Grazers are not the only organisms capable of removing viruses from the water column. Non-host organisms such as anemones, polychaeta larvae, sea squirts, crabs, cockles, oysters, and sponges are all capable of significantly reducing the viral abundance. [23]
Most marine viruses are bacteriophages, which are harmless to plants and animals, but are essential to the regulation of saltwater and freshwater ecosystems. [ 56 ] : 5 They infect and destroy bacteria and archaea in aquatic microbial communities, and are the most important mechanism of recycling carbon in the marine environment.
Viruses are now considered to play key roles in marine ecosystems by controlling microbial community dynamics, host metabolic status, and biogeochemical cycling via lysis of hosts. [41] [42] [44] [45] A giant marine virus CroV infects and causes the death by lysis of the marine zooflagellate Cafeteria roenbergensis. [46]
Studies have also suggested that resident bacteria, archaea, and fungi additionally contribute to nutrient and organic matter cycling within the coral, with viruses also possibly playing a role in structuring the composition of these members, thus providing one of the first glimpses at a multi-domain marine animal symbiosis. [70]