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Viruses
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Bacteriophage Diversity, 2nd Edition
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Bacteriophage Diversity, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "Bacterial Viruses".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2026 | Viewed by 1547

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Bert Ely

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA
Interests: bacterial genetics; bacteriophage genomes; bacterial genome evolution
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Numerous metagenomic analyses have provided new evidence that bacteriophages are abundant, ubiquitous and extremely diverse. In addition, the dramatically lower cost of nucleotide sequencing has enabled researchers to identify evolutionary relationships among collections of closely related bacteriophages isolated from specific environments. As a result, there has been a resurgence in the number of laboratories studying recently isolated bacteriophages.

As additional phages are isolated and the nucleotide sequence of their genomes is determined, new genera are being identified, and within-genera comparisons can identify evolutionary trends that lead to the diversification of bacteriophage genomes.

To highlight this renewed interest in bacteriophage diversity, the journal Viruses will devote a Special Issue to the topic of bacteriophage diversity that is intended to showcase research papers that investigate the diversity present in collections of bacteriophages that have been isolated from natural environments.

Prof. Dr. Bert Ely
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bacteriophages phage
  • diversity genome
  • evolution
  • new genera
  • phage-host interactions

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 16011 KB  
Article
Novel Giant Phages vB_AerVM_332-Vera and vB_AerVM_332-Igor and Siphophage vB_AerVS_332-Yulya Infecting the Same Aeromonas veronii Strain
by Igor V. Babkin, Vera V. Morozova, Yuliya N. Kozlova, Valeria A. Fedorets, Artem Y. Tikunov, Tatyana A. Ushakova, Alevtina V. Bardasheva, Elena V. Zhirakovskaya and Nina V. Tikunova
Viruses 2025, 17(8), 1027; https://doi.org/10.3390/v17081027 - 22 Jul 2025
Viewed by 468
Abstract
Three novel Aeromonas phages vB_AerVS_332-Yuliya, vB_AerVM_332-Vera, and vB_AerVM_332-Igor and their host Aeromonas veronii CEMTC7594 were found in the same water + sediments sample collected in a freshwater pond. Complete genome sequencing indicated that vB_AerVS_332-Yuliya (43,584 bp) is a siphophage, whereas vB_AerVM_332-Vera (294,685 bp) [...] Read more.
Three novel Aeromonas phages vB_AerVS_332-Yuliya, vB_AerVM_332-Vera, and vB_AerVM_332-Igor and their host Aeromonas veronii CEMTC7594 were found in the same water + sediments sample collected in a freshwater pond. Complete genome sequencing indicated that vB_AerVS_332-Yuliya (43,584 bp) is a siphophage, whereas vB_AerVM_332-Vera (294,685 bp) and vB_AerVM_332-Igor (237,907 bp) are giant phages. The host strain can grow at temperatures from 5 °C to 37 °C with an optimum of 25–37 °C; siphophage vB_AerVS_332-Yuliya effectively reproduced at temperature ≤ 25 °C, the optimal temperature for giant phage vB_AerVM_332-Igor was 25 °C, and giant phage vB_AerVM_332-Vera infected host cells at 5–10 °C. The genomes of these phages differed significantly from known phages; their level of nucleotide identity and values of intergenomic similarity with the corresponding neighboring phages indicated that each of these phages is a member of a new genus/subfamily. Giant phage vB_AerVM_332-Vera is a member of the proposed Chimallinviridae family, which forms Cluster D of giant phages that possibly evolved from phages with shorter genomes. Giant phage vB_AerVM_332-Igor is part of Cluster E, the known members of which preserve the size of genomes. Phages from Cluster F, containing Aeromonas phages among others, show a gradual decrease and/or increase in genomes during evolution, which indicates different strategies for giant phages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacteriophage Diversity, 2nd Edition)
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Review

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15 pages, 690 KB  
Review
The Role of Bacteriophage-Derived Small RNA Molecules in Bacterial and Phage Interactions
by Natalia Lewandowska, Sylwia Bloch, Aleksandra Łukasiak, Wojciech Wesołowski, Grzegorz Węgrzyn and Bożena Nejman-Faleńczyk
Viruses 2025, 17(6), 834; https://doi.org/10.3390/v17060834 - 10 Jun 2025
Viewed by 776
Abstract
Small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) play a critical role in bacterial gene expression, modulating various cellular processes, including stress responses, metabolism, virulence, and many others. While well-characterized in bacterial systems, an emerging class of phage-derived sRNAs has been identified, suggesting an underexplored regulatory network [...] Read more.
Small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) play a critical role in bacterial gene expression, modulating various cellular processes, including stress responses, metabolism, virulence, and many others. While well-characterized in bacterial systems, an emerging class of phage-derived sRNAs has been identified, suggesting an underexplored regulatory network at phage–host interactions. These sRNAs, encoded within phage genomes, influence both bacterial and viral life cycles by modulating transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene expression processes. The interplay between phage-derived sRNAs and the host genome reveals a complex network of gene regulation, with an impact on bacterial fitness, pathogenesis, and horizontal gene transfer. This review explores the diverse functions of phage-encoded sRNAs, highlighting recent discoveries and their impact on bacterial physiology and phage-host interactions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacteriophage Diversity, 2nd Edition)
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