Vertical Transmission of Zika Virus in Aedes aegypti Mosquitoes

Abstract

Previous experimental studies have demonstrated that a number of mosquito-borne flavivirus pathogens are vertically transmitted in their insect vectors, providing a mechanism for these arboviruses to persist during adverse climatic conditions or in the absence of a susceptible vertebrate host. In this study, designed to test whether Zika virus (ZIKV) could be vertically transmitted, female Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus were injected with ZIKV, and their F1 adult progeny were tested for ZIKV infection. Six of 69 Ae. aegypti pools, comprised of a total of 1,738 F1 adults, yielded ZIKV upon culture, giving a minimum filial infection rate of 1:290. In contrast, none of 803 F1 Ae. albopictus adults (32 pools) yielded ZIKV. The MFIR for Ae. aegypti was comparable to MFIRs reported for other flaviviruses in mosquitoes, including dengue, Japanese encephalitis, yellow fever, West Nile, and St. Louis encephalitis viruses. The results suggest that vertical transmission may provide a potential mechanism for the virus to survive during adverse conditions.

Global risk mapping for major diseases transmitted by Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus

“…Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus have received a great deal of attention worldwide, since both species are efficient vectors for human arboviral diseases such as Zika (Thangamani et al, 2016; Marchette et al, 1969; Gardner et al, 2016; Marcondes and de FF de Ximenes, 2016), dengue (Jansen and Beebe, 2010; Rosen et al, 1983), chikungunya (Paupy et al, 2010; Burt et al, 2012), and yellow fever (Aitken et al, 1979) A. aegypti is also a vector for zoonotic diseases such as Rift Valley fever (RVF) (Mweya et al, 2013), which is considered to be one of the more serious emerging zoonotic diseases (Pepin et al, 2010). …”

Zika Virus Vector Competency of Mosquitoes, Gulf Coast, United States

“…Part of the concern is local, mosquitoborne transmission in the United States ( 1 ). Aedes ( Stegomyia ) aegypti mosquitoes are believed to be the primary urban Zika virus vectors, according to laboratory transmission studies ( 2 ) including vertical ( 3 ) and natural Zika virus infections detected in Malaysia ( 4 ) and during a 2015 Mexico outbreak ( 5 ). This highly anthropophilic mosquito occurs nearly throughout the tropics and subtropics, including the southern United States.…”

The Impact of Heterogeneity and Awareness in Modeling Epidemic Spreading on Multiplex Networks

“…41, our model fits mathematically with the nature of pathogen in epidemic terms. The applicability of the proposed SIR-like model is related with the Zika virus transmission since it can be transmitted in different ways50. Among them, since one of our targets is to explore the large scale transmission of Zika virus, the human-to-mosquito-to-human cycle transmission is the unique type of transmission we are interested in, which justifies the choice of a SIR-like as an abstract diffusion model41.…”