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Review
. 2025 Aug 21;17(8):1145.
doi: 10.3390/v17081145.

The Role of Myxoma Virus Immune Modulators and Host Range Factors in Pathogenesis and Species Leaping

Junior A Enow  1   2 , Ana M Lopes  3   4 , Joana Abrantes  5   6   7 , Pedro J Esteves  5   6   7   8 , Masmudur M Rahman  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The Role of Myxoma Virus Immune Modulators and Host Range Factors in Pathogenesis and Species Leaping

Junior A Enow et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

Myxoma virus (MYXV) is a leporipoxvirus that causes lethal disease in Leporids. Hares and rabbits belong to the Leporidae family and are believed to have had a common ancestor 12 million years ago. After seventy years of contact with European hares without causing mortalities or disease manifestation, a recombinant MYXV infected Iberian hares (Lepus granatensis) causing high mortalities. Like all poxviruses, MYXV encodes a wealth of immune modulators required for successful virulence that also mediate host species jumping, for example, into hares. Here, we summarize the data of known MYXV immune modulators, their cellular functions, and their effects on European rabbits. Additionally, we suggest that the critical restrictions MYXV would encounter in colonizing a potentially new host species stem from their interactions with the host's innate immune environment. Lastly, we synthesize our understanding of some poxvirus genome architectural features that might have facilitated the host species jump of MYXV into hares from rabbits.

Keywords: host range; immune modulators; leporipoxvirus; myxoma virus; poxvirus; species leaping.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Poxvirus phylogenetic tree. Phylogenetic relationships using 25 genes conserved across the Poxviridae family. Sequences were aligned using MAFFT (multiple alignment using fast Fourier transform). Phylogenetic tree was constructed using IQ Tree 2 and visualized using iTOL (interactive tree of life).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Predicted alpha fold structure of T1.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Predicted alpha fold structure of T2.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Predicted alpha fold structure of T4.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Predicted alpha fold structure of T5.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Predicted alpha fold structure of T7.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Predicted alpha fold structure of Serp-1.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Predicted alpha fold structure of M10.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Predicted alpha fold structure of M11.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Predicted alpha fold structure of M13.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Predicted alpha fold structure of M029.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Predicted alpha fold structure of M062.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Predicted alpha fold structure of M063.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Predicted alpha fold structure of M064.
Figure 15
Figure 15
Predicted alpha fold structure of M128.
Figure 16
Figure 16
Predicted alpha fold structure of M130.
Figure 17
Figure 17
Predicted alpha fold structure of M131.
Figure 18
Figure 18
Predicted alpha fold structure of M135.
Figure 19
Figure 19
Predicted alpha fold structure of M138.
Figure 20
Figure 20
Predicted alpha fold structure of M141.
Figure 21
Figure 21
Predicted alpha fold structure of M148.
Figure 22
Figure 22
Predicted alpha fold structure of M149.
Figure 23
Figure 23
Predicted alpha fold structure of M150.
Figure 24
Figure 24
Predicted alpha fold structure of Serp2.
Figure 25
Figure 25
Predicted alpha fold structure of Serp3.
Figure 26
Figure 26
Predicted alpha fold structure of M153.
Figure 27
Figure 27
Predicted alpha fold structure of M156.
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