Bracovirus

Parasitoid wasps in the subfamilies Microgastrinae, Miracinae, Cheloninae, Cardiochilinae, Khoikhoiinae, and Mendesellinae are the natural hosts for Bracoviruses, though the virus does not cause disease in these wasps. Instead, the wasps are themselves parasites of lepidoptera. The wasp injects one or more eggs into its lepidoptera host along with a quantity of virus. The virus does not replicate inside the wasp's host, but expression of viral genes prevents its immune system from killing the wasp's egg and causes other physiological alterations that ultimately cause the parasitized host to die.^[2] Studies conducted on Cotesia congregata have shown that male wasps do contain proviral sequences of DNA, but the females are the ones responsible for the amplification of the viral DNA.^[4]

The genus Bracovirus contained the 32 species in ICTV versions 1999a-2020^[5] The genus Bracoviriform contains the following 31 species starting ICTV version 2021^[3] The species Ichnoviriform rostralis, previously known as Tranosema rostrale bracovirus was moved to Ichnoviriform (Ichnovirus) from Bracoviriform (Bracovirus) in 2021.

Viruses in Bracovirus are enveloped, with prolate ellipsoid and cylindrical geometries. Genomes are circular and segmented, around 2.0-31kb in length. The genome of the virus is enveloped with 35 double stranded DNA (dsDNA) all of which are circular.^[2][4]