Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022/Tara Oceans GOSEE, 75016 Paris, France.
The Interdisciplinary Biophysics Graduate Program, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Nantes Université, CNRS UMR 6004, LS2N, F-44000 Nantes, France.
Department of Biology, Institute of Microbiology and Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Department of Physics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Division of Hematology, Department of Internal Medicine, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Department of Statistics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Département de Biochimie, Microbiologie et Bio-informatique, Université Laval, Québec, Québec G1V 0A6, Canada.
Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD 21702, USA.
Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geodetic Engineering, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Whereas DNA viruses are known to be abundant, diverse, and commonly key ecosystem players, RNA viruses are insufficiently studied outside disease settings. In this study, we analyzed ≈28 terabases of Global Ocean RNA sequences to expand Earth's RNA virus catalogs and their taxonomy, investigate their evolutionary origins, and assess their marine biogeography from pole to pole. Using new approaches to optimize discovery and classification, we identified RNA viruses that necessitate substantive revisions of taxonomy (doubling phyla and adding >50% new classes) and evolutionary understanding. "Species"-rank abundance determination revealed that viruses of the new phyla "Taraviricota," a missing link in early RNA virus evolution, and "Arctiviricota" are widespread and dominant in the oceans. These efforts provide foundational knowledge critical to integrating RNA viruses into ecological and epidemiological models.
