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Pathogen genetics

Non-retroviral RNA viruses in eukaryotic genomes

Nature Reviews Genetics volume 27, page 12 (2026) Cite this article

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Non-retroviral RNA viruses have RNA genomes but do not use reverse transcription, and they are the most common type of virus to infect eukaryotes. Such viruses with high epidemiological relevance include Dengue, Chikungunya, West Nile and Zika viruses, all of which are transmitted to humans through the bite of arthropods and hence are collectively known as arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses). The primary arthropod vectors worldwide are the mosquito species, Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, with Ae. koreicus and Ae. japonicus emerging as additional vectors owing to the recent expansion of their distribution ranges.

The integration of non-retroviral RNA sequences into a host genome was first documented in the early 1970s via nucleic acid hybridization experiments, and these findings were confirmed in 1997 when Klenerman et al. described sequences from the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus in the genome of mouse spleen cells after acute infection. However, these cases were generally viewed as sporadic observations until 2004, when a paper by Crochu et al. described the integration of a non-retroviral sequence into mosquito genomes, and made important follow-up observations that proved non-retroviral integration to be a complex biological phenomenon.

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References

Original article

  • Crochu, S. et al. Sequences of flavivirus-related RNA viruses persist in DNA form integrated in the genome of Aedes spp. mosquitoes. J. Gen. Virol. 85, 1971–1980 (2004)

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  1. Department of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

    Mariangela Bonizzoni

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  1. Mariangela Bonizzoni
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Correspondence to Mariangela Bonizzoni.

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Bonizzoni, M. Non-retroviral RNA viruses in eukaryotic genomes. Nat Rev Genet 27, 12 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41576-025-00874-7

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