Potential Vectors of Rift Valley Fever Virus in the Mediterranean Region

Abstract

We evaluated the ability of three mosquito species (Aedes caspius, Aedes detritus, Culex pipiens), collected in southern France and Tunisia, and of different laboratory-established colonies (Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, Aedes vexans, Anopheles gambiae, Culex pipiens, Culex quinquefasciatus) to disseminate two strains of Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV), the virulent ZH548 and the avirulent Clone 13. After feeding on an infectious blood meal at 10(8.5) plaque-forming units/mL, females were maintained at 30 degrees C for 14 days. Surviving females were tested for the presence of virus on head squashes. Disseminated infection rate corresponds to the number of females with disseminated infection among surviving females. Among field-collected mosquitoes, Cx. pipiens was the most susceptible species with disseminated infection rates ranging from 3.9% to 9.1% for French strains and up to 14.7% for Tunisian strains. Among laboratory-established colonies, Ae. aegypti from Tahiti exhibited the highest disseminated infection rates: 90% when infected with ZH548 and 72.6% with Clone 13. The presence of competent Cx. pipiens in southern France and Tunisia indicates the potential for RVFV epizootics to occur if the virus was introduced into countries of the Mediterranean basin.

A Review of Mosquitoes Associated with Rift Valley Fever Virus in Madagascar

“…27,28 Humans can be infected by contact with infected tissues or aerosols of infected blood generated during ruminant abortion or animal slaughter. 27,29 (2) Vector transmission occurs through the bite of infected mosquitoes. 30 The 18 Although RVF transmission to humans by infected mosquitoes was never been directly reported, probably more than one species of the Ae.…”

Household survey of container–breeding mosquitoes and climatic factors influencing the prevalence of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) in Makkah City, Saudi Arabia

“…In Saudi Arabia, three serotypes of dengue (DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3) were first detected in Jeddah in 1994 [24] and Aedes mosquitoes have been implicated in many arboviral infection epidemics [25,26] , including outbreaks of dengue [27] . In this country, there has been an increase in the distribution of Ae.…”

Creation of a Nonspreading Rift Valley Fever Virus

“…The human fatality rate is historically estimated to be below 1%, although considerably higher mortality rates have been reported (1,2,19). RVFV is currently largely confined to the African continent and the Arabian Peninsula, but mosquitoes capable of transmitting RVFV are not restricted to these areas (33,43,44). This explains the growing concern for RVFV incursions into previously unaffected areas, including Europe, Australasia, and the Americas (9,10,12,22,37).…”