Advances in host prediction approaches for environmental phages

Abstract:

Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on Earth. They play an important role in biogeochemical cycles and the evolution of life by regulating host community structure, causing mortality, and mediating genetic exchange. In recent years, the development of metagenomics has enabled the global-scale study of environmental viruses. A large number of novel viral genomes have been uncovered, and the roles and contributions of viruses in ecological processes and biogeochemical cycles have been recognized. The important role of viruses in ecosystem is mainly dependent on the infecting host. However, host prediction of environmental viruses has lagged far behind the studies of environmental viral genomics. This review aims to provide the latest knowledge of the main approaches for virus-host prediction, their pros and cons, and application, to reveal the importance of host prediction in the ecological research and bioengineering of viruses, and to present an outlook on the future development of host prediction approaches.