Novel Cyclovirus Discovered in the Florida Woods Cockroach Eurycotis floridana (Walker)

A novel cyclovirus (proposed genus “Cyclovirus”, family Circoviridae) was discovered in a specimen of Eurycotis floridana (Walker), also known as the Florida woods cockroach or palmetto bug, collected from Tarpon Springs, Florida. The Florida woods cockroach–associated cyclovirus GS140 (FWCasCyV-GS140) was obtained through a degenerate PCR assay and showed 64 % genome-wide pairwise identity to a cyclovirus identified in bat feces. This finding supports recent reports suggesting that Circoviridae members, traditionally thought to only infect vertebrates, are present within insect populations