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Virosphere (virus diversity, virus world, global virosphere) was coined to refer to all those places in which viruses are found or which are affected by viruses. However, more recently virosphere has also been used to refer to the pool of viruses that occurs in all hosts and all environments, as well as viruses associated with specific types of hosts (Prokaryote virosphere, virosphere, Invertebrate virosphere), type of genome (RNA virosphere, DNA virosphere) or ecological niche (marine virosphere).
Viral genome size varies approximately 1000 fold. Smallest viruses may consist of only from 1–2 kb genome coding for 1 or 2 genes and it is enough for them to successfully evolve and travel through space and time by infecting and replicating (make copies of their own) in its host. Two most basic viral genes are replicase gene and capsid protein gene, as soon as virus has them it represents a biological entity able to evolve and reproduce in cellular life forms. Some viruses may have only replicase gene and use capsid gene of other e.g. endogenous virus. Most viral genomes are 10-100kb, whereas tend to have larger genomes carrying parts of genome translation machinery genes from their host. In contrast, RNA viruses have smaller genomes, with maximum 35kb by coronavirus. RNA genomes have higher mutation rate, that is why their genome has to be small enough in order not to harbour to many mutations, which would disrupt the essential genes or their parts. The function of the vast majority of viral genes remain unknown and the approaches to study have to be developed. The total number of viral genes is much higher, than the total number of genes of three domains of life all together, which practically means viruses encode most of the genetic diversity on the planet.
Some viruses have extremely narrow host range and are able to infect only 1 certain strain of 1 bacterial species, whereas others are able to infect hundreds or even thousands of different hosts. For example cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) can use more than 1000 different plant species as a host. Members of viral families like Rhabdoviridae infect hosts from different kingdoms e.g. plants and vertebrates. And members of genera Psimunavirus and Myohalovirus infect hosts from different domains of life e.g. bacteria and archaea.
Capsid size of a virus differs dramatically depending on its genome size and capsid type.Icosahedral capsids are measured by diameter, whereas helical and complex are measured by length and diameter. Viruses differ in capsid size in a spectrum from 10 to more than 1000 nm. The smallest viruses are ssRNA viruses like Parvoviridae. They have icosahedral capsid approximately 14 nm in diameter. Whereas the biggest currently known viruses are Pithovirus, Mamavirus and Pandoravirus. Pithovirus is a flask-shaped virus 1500 nm long and 500 nm in diameter, Pandoravirus is an oval-shaped virus1000nm (1 micron) long and Mamavirus is an icosahedral virus reaching approximately 500 nm in diameter. Example of how capsid size depends on the size of viral genome can be shown by comparing icosahedral viruses - the smallest viruses are 15-30 nm in diameter have genomes in range of 5 to 15 kb (kilo bases or kilo base pairs depending on type of genome), and the biggest are near 500 nm in diameter and their genomes are also the largest, they exceed1Mb (million base pairs).
Nowadays we are entering the phase of exponential viral discovery. The genome sequencing technologies including high-throughput methods allow fast and cheap sequencing of environmental samples. The vast majority of the sequences from any environment, both from wild nature and human made, reservoirs are new. It practically means that during over 100 years of virus research from the discovery of bacteriophages - viruses of bacteria in 1917 until current time we only scratched on a surface of a great viral diversity. The classic methods like viral culture used previously allowed to observe physical virions or viral particles using electron microscope, they also allowed to gathering information about their physical and molecular properties. New methods deal only with the genetic information of viruses.
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