Another view of RNA recombination

Almost all current models of genetic recombination in RNA viruses assume th at recombinants arise during RNA synthesis through polymerase switching bet ween templates, although this hypothesis was never tested directly. Recent studies have provided direct proof of nonreplicative recombination, which c an either be performed by RNA molecules themselves or be assisted by protei ns. This necessitates a revision of our views on the mechanism of RNA recom bination.