Small RNA profiling of Fringilla coelebs infected with Fringilla coelebs papillomavirus

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNAs that regulate diverse biological processes including multiple aspects of the host-pathogen interface. Consequently, miRNAs are commonly encoded by viruses that undergo long-term persistent infection. Papillomaviruses (PVs) are capable of undergoing persistent infection, but as yet, no widely-accepted PV-encoded miRNAs have been described. Here we provide evidence for Fringilla coelebs papillomavirus (FcPV) miRNAs expressed in vivo in a natural host.