The Malacoherpesviridae are a family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 of DNA virus

DNA virus

A DNA virus is a virus that has DNA as its genetic material and replicates using a DNA-dependent DNA polymerase. The nucleic acid is usually double-stranded DNA but may also be single-stranded DNA . DNA viruses belong to either Group I or Group II of the Baltimore classification system for viruses...

es that cause diseases in molluscs.

The family name Malacoherpesviridae is derived from Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 word 'μαλακός (malacos) meaning 'soft' and from Greek word 'μαλάκιον (malakion) meaning 'mollusc.

Within this family two species have been described: Ostreid herpesvirus 1 in 2009 and Haliotid herpesvirus 1

Haliotid herpesvirus 1

Haliotid herpesvirus 1 , common name abalone herpesvirus, is a virus in the family family Malacoherpesviridae.- Discovery :...

 in 2010.

Malacoherpesviridae may have the ability to infect across species, a feature not typically observed in vertebrate

Vertebrate

Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...

 herpesviruses. This ability appears to be restricted to related mollusc species.

Genera

• Ostreavirus Davison et al., 2009
  • Ostreid herpesvirus 1 Davison et al., 2009 - acronym: OsHV1, common name: Oyster herpesvirus - its host are bivalves (oyster
    Oyster
    The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....
    
    )
• Haliotivirus Savin et al., 2010
  • Haliotid herpesvirus 1
    Haliotid herpesvirus 1
    Haliotid herpesvirus 1 , common name abalone herpesvirus, is a virus in the family family Malacoherpesviridae.- Discovery :...
    
     Savin et al., 2010 - acronym: AbHV-1, common name: abalone herpesvirus, its host are abalone sea snails Haliotis spp. such as Haliotis diversicolor
    Haliotis diversicolor
    Haliotis diversicolor is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Haliotidae, the abalones.- Subspecies :* Haliotis diversicolor diversicolor Reeve, 1846* Haliotis diversicolor squamata Reeve, 1846...