"Discovery of Thousands of New Viruses in Microbes and Baby Diapers"

Researchers analyzing the genomes of single-celled microbes have discovered over 30,000 previously unknown viruses hidden within the microbes' DNA. The viruses don't seem to sicken their hosts and may even be beneficial, protecting the cell from infection by dangerous viruses. The newly discovered viruses are similar to virophage DNA, suggesting microbes may enjoy some protection from giant viruses thanks to the "built-in" viruses residing in their genomes. The study also found evidence that many protist EVEs are not just genomic fossils but functional viruses, which suggests that diverse arrays of these elements may be part of a host antivirus system.