Virus families

Virus families represent groups of virus genera that share the common characteristics of the order, but are distinct from other families within that order; families are designated by the suffix -viridae. Most of the families have distinct genome structure, virion morphology and strategies of repetition. Families as groupings have proved to be excellent models for classification and some (e.g. Herpesviridae) require subfamilies (suffix-virinae) due to the complex relationships between individual members. The Herpesviridae are further classified into three subfamilies the Alphaherpesvirinae, the Betaherpesvirinae and the Gammaherpesvirinae.