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Viral Dark Matter: Illuminating Protein Function, Ecology, and Biotechnological Promises
James C. Kosmopoulos, Karthik Anantharaman
https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.11942

Viral Dark Matter: Illuminating Protein Function, Ecology, and Biotechnological Promises
Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on Earth and play central roles in shaping microbiomes and influencing ecosystem functions. Yet, most viral genes remain uncharacterized, comprising what is commonly referred to as "viral dark matter." Metagenomic studies across diverse environments consistently show that 40-90% of viral genes lack known homologs or annotated functions. This persistent knowledge gap limits our ability to interpret viral sequence data, understand virus-host inter…