The genome of the archaeal virus SIRV1 has features in common with genomesof eukaryal viruses

The virus SIRV1 of the extremely thermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus has a dou ble-stranded DNA genome similar in architecture to the genomes of eukaryal viruses of the families Poxviridae, Pycodnaviridae, and Asfarviridae: the t wo strands of the 32,301 bp long linear genome are covalently connected for ming a continuous polynucleotide chain and 2029 kb long inverted repeats ar e present at the termini. Very likely it also shares with these viruses mec hanisms of initiation of replication and resolution of replicative intermed iates, (C) 2001 Academic Press.