Because of its ecological characteristics, the Caxiuanã National Forest (FLONA) is a potential area of arbovirus circulation. The present study aimed to investigate the occurrence of arbovirus transmission cycles at FLONA de Caxiuanã. Five field trips were performed to capture mosquitoes and sylvatic vertebrates. For these vertebrates, we attempted viral isolation by cell monolayer inoculation from blood, and hemagglutination inhibition and further seroneutralization assays from sera. For mosquitoes, we performed tests of viral genome detection. A total of 338 vertebrates were captured, and the greatest representative was birds (251/74.26%). A total of 16,725 mosquitoes were captured, distributed among 56 species. There were no viruses isolated by newborn mouse inoculation. Among birds, antibodies against Ilheus virus were the most prevalent. Catu virus, Caraparu virus, and Mucambo virus were the most prevalent among mammals and reptiles. Fragments of Mucambo virus, Ilheus virus, Bussuquara virus, and Rocio virus genome were detected in a pool of mosquito samples. These results of the study suggest the occurrence of arbovirus transmission cycles in the FLONA of Caxiuanã. The proximity of human populations with elements, involved in transmission cycles, makes surveillance necessary in this population to avoid dispersion of arboviruses to naïve locations.

The viral genus Henipavirus includes two highly virulent zoonotic viruses of serious public health concern. Hendra henipavirus and Nipah henipavirus outbreaks are restricted to Australia and Southeast Asia, respectively. The Henipavirus genus comprises mostly bat-borne viruses, but exceptions have already been described as novel viruses with rodents and shrews as reservoir animals. In the Americas, scarce evidence supports the circulation of these viruses. In this communication, we report a novel henipa-like virus from opossums (Marmosa demerarae) from a forest fragment area in the Peixe-Boi municipality, Brazil, after which the virus was named the Peixe-Boi virus (PBV). The application of next-generation sequencing and metagenomic approach led us to discover the original evidence of a henipa-like virus genome in Brazil and South America and the original description of a henipa-like virus in marsupial species. These findings emphasize the importance of further studies to characterize PBV and clarify its ecology, impact on public health, and its relationship with didelphid marsupials and henipaviruses.

Dengue virus 2 (DENV-2) seriously contributes to dengue-related mortality. It includes five nonsylvatic genotypes, with cosmopolitan being the most widespread with a significant contribution to the total number of DENV-2 cases globally. In South America, the cosmopolitan genotype was first recorded in 2019 in Madre de Dios, Peru, and then in Goiás (Midwest Brazil) in November 2021. In this study, we tested 163 human serum samples from Acre (Northern Brazil) collected during a DENV outbreak between 2020 and 2021 for all DENV genotypes by RT-qPCR. Of the 163 samples, 139 were positive for DENV-2, and 5 were positive for DENV-1. Five DENV-2-positive samples from early 2021 were sequenced, and the sequences clustered with the three other DENV-2 cosmopolitan genotype sequences already recorded on the continent. These results create a geographical link, suggesting the possible route of introduction of the DENV-2 cosmopolitan genotype into Brazil through the border with Peru, from which it may have dispersed to Midwest Brazil.

As part of a continuous effort to investigate the viral communities associated with wild mammals at the human–animal interface in an Amazonian metropolitan region, this study describes the detection of a novel rodent-borne arterivirus. A sample containing pooled organs of Oecomys paricola was submitted to RNA sequencing, and four sequences taxonomically assigned as related to the Arteriviridae family were recovered, corresponding to an almost complete genome of nearly 13 kb summed. In the phylogenetic analysis with the standard domains used for taxa demarcation in the family, the tentatively named Oecomys arterivirus 1 (OAV-1) was placed within the clade of rodent- and porcine-associated viruses, corresponding to the Variarterivirinae subfamily. The divergence analysis, based on the same amino acid alignment, corroborated the hypothesis that the virus may represent a new genus within the subfamily. These findings contribute to the expansion of the current knowledge about the diversity, host and geographical range of the viral family. Arterivirids are non-human pathogens and are usually species-specific, but the susceptibility of cell lines derived from different organisms should be conducted to confirm these statements for this proposed new genus in an initial attempt to assess its spillover potential.