Observation of positive selection within hypervariable regions of a newly identified DNA virus (SEN virus)

To elucidate the evolution of SEN virus (SEN-V), serial sequences of chronically SEN-V-infected patients were analyzed. In the hypervariable regions, non-synonymous substitutions significantly predominated. This could be attributed to positive selection in evading immune surveillance of the hosts and to establish a persistent infection. On the basis of the sequences in the two open reading frames of SEN-V DNA, the rate of synonymous substitutions was 7.32×10⁻⁴ per site per year. Since this rate is close to RNA viruses and higher than other DNA viruses, the SEN-V might be replicated by machinery with poor or no proofreading function.