Data Dictionary for ERV Navigator Loci Tables

About the Missillac Nomenclature

The Missillac nomenclature provides a stable naming system for individual human endogenous retrovirus (ERV) loci. It was developed to address inconsistencies between historical naming conventions and to provide a unified framework for integrating data from multiple annotation resources.

Historically, human ERV loci have been described using a variety of names derived from different studies and annotation systems, including RepBase, RepeatMasker, RetroTector and individual publications. As a result, the same genomic insertion may be known by several different names, while similar names have sometimes been applied to unrelated loci. These inconsistencies make it difficult to compare datasets and integrate results across studies.

The Missillac system assigns a single, stable identifier to each ERV locus. Locus names are based on the inferred ERV lineage together with a unique numerical identifier, following the format ERV-<lineage>.<number>-HomSap, where lineage indicates the assigned ERV lineage, number uniquely identifies the integration event, and HomSap denotes Homo sapiens. The numerical identifier is intended to represent the biological insertion rather than its genomic coordinates, allowing the identifier to remain stable even as genome assemblies and annotations evolve.

The Missillac nomenclature is intended to complement, rather than replace, historical naming systems. ERV Navigator preserves previously published names and annotation identifiers as aliases and cross-references, allowing users to search using familiar terminology while providing a single canonical identifier for each locus.

Lineage assignments within the Missillac system are based primarily on phylogenetic analysis and are integrated with evidence from existing annotation resources. Where relationships are uncertain, or where loci show evidence of complex evolutionary histories, these uncertainties are explicitly represented rather than forcing assignments into inappropriate categories.

By providing stable locus identifiers together with comprehensive cross-references to existing annotation systems, the Missillac nomenclature supports reproducible analyses, simplifies comparison between studies, and provides a consistent framework for future expansion of the ERV Navigator resource.