Summary of taxonomy changes ratified by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) from the Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee, 2025.
Turner D, Adriaenssens EM, Amann RI, Bardy P, Bartlau N, Barylski J, Błażejak S, Bouzari M, Briegel A, Briers Y, Carrillo D, Chen X, Claessen D, Cook R, Crisci MA, Dechesne A, Deptula P, Dutilh BE, Ely B, Fieseler L, Fogg PCM, Fukudome A, Ganjoor MS, Gientka I, Holmfeldt K, Kalatzis PG, Kauffman KM, Kempff A, Knezevic P, Koonin EV, Kropinski AM, Krupovic M, Kurtböke I, Lambon K, Lavigne R, Lehman SM, Liu HT, Lood C, Lurz R, Mäntynen S, Matrishin CB, Middelboe M, Millard AD, Moraru C, Nielsen DS, Nobrega FL, Nunoura T, Oksanen HM, Ongenae V, Parra B, Pas C, Pogliano J, Poranen MM, Potipimpanon S, Prichard A, Pye HV, Rothschild-Rodriguez D, Rozen DE, Santini JM, Sha Y, Shymialevich D, Sokołowska B, Soleimani-Delfan A, Średnicka P, Tavares P, Telatin A, Tolstoy I, Urayama SI, van Neer V, Vogensen FK, Wen Q, Wichels A, Wójcicki M, Ictv Taxonomy Summary Consortium 2025 Summary of taxonomy changes ratified by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) from the Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee, 2025. J Gen Virol 106,
Abstract
This article summarises the activities of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee, detailing developments in the classification of bacterial viruses. We provide here an overview of all new, abolished, moved and renamed taxa proposed in 2024, approved by the Executive Committee, and ratified by membership vote in 2025. Through the collective efforts of 74 international contributors of taxonomy proposals in this round, 43 ratified proposals have led to the creation of one new phylum, one class, four orders, 33 families, 14 subfamilies, 194 genera and 995 species. These proposals mark significant progress in refining the taxonomy of bacterial viruses. Key updates include the creation of new orders and families that include existing taxa to better reflect genomic and evolutionary relationships. As sequencing and bioinformatics approaches continue to advance, further expansion and refinements in viral taxonomy can be anticipated in the coming years.