Explaining virus diversity

为了防止病毒大流行，有必要了解病毒是如何进化的。该项目旨在揭示RNA病毒多样性和进化的长期趋势、过程和驱动因素。通过对标志着进化创新和转变的澳大利亚动物的病毒组进行宏基因组测序，该项目将重塑我们对病毒进化和疾病出现的认识。预期的结果将是对病毒多样性是如何产生的，病毒表型是如何随着时间的推移而变化的，病毒跳跃到新宿主物种的频率，以及动物进化中的重大事件是如何塑造病毒多样性的有了新的认识。主要的好处包括对澳大利亚本土动物面临的病毒负担和生态系统健康采取新的措施。

To prevent virus pandemics, it is necessary to understand how viruses evolve. This project aims to reveal the long-term trends, processes and drivers of RNA virus diversity and evolution. Through the metagenomic sequencing of the viromes of Australian animals that mark evolutionary innovations and transitions this project will reshape our knowledge of virus evolution and disease emergence. Expected outcomes will be a new understanding of how virus diversity is created, how virus phenotypes have changed through time, how often viruses jump to new host species, and how major events in animal evolution have shaped virus diversity. Key benefits include new measures of the viral burden faced by Australia’s native animals and of ecosystem health.