A team led by researchers from the University of Patras in Greece have developed an accessible new tool that simplifies the discovery of viruses in fungi using RNA sequencing data. Led by first author Alexandros Bompotas, the team created DiscMycoVir, an easy-to-use platform designed to detect mycoviruses, viruses that infect fungi, in transcriptome data, even for users with no coding experience.

Traditionally, finding mycoviruses in RNA-seq data has required advanced bioinformatics skills and manual analysis. DiscMycoVir changes that by combining trusted tools for next-generation sequencing analysis with a streamlined interface and clear reporting features. Users can identify mycoviruses by uploading transcriptome data and running the pipeline through either an online portal or by installing the open-source software from GitHub.

System Overview

The user interacts with the platform via a web user interface and an email service. A broker and an analyser comprise the backend, with the former orchestrating the entire process and the latter being responsible for the data analysis. Information regarding each job and relevant files are stored respectively in JobsDB and files storage

To demonstrate its capabilities, the team used DiscMycoVir to screen RNA-seq data from Candida auris, a pathogenic yeast. The tool successfully identified mycoviruses present in the fungal transcriptome, showing how effective and intuitive the platform is for real-world analysis.

DiscMycoVir could help researchers explore viral-fungal interactions across a wide range of species, offering new insights into fungal biology, evolution, and possibly even treatment strategies in clinical settings.

Availability – DiscMycoVir can be accessed online for reviewing purposes at: https://discmycovir.imslab.gr:8000 and the source code is located at https://github.com/abompotas/DiscMycoVir.