West Nile virus in Central Europe – Pandora's box is wide open!

Popescu, Corneliu Petru; Florescu, Simin Aysel; Ruță, Simona

doi:10.1016/j.tmaid.2020.101864

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…West Nile virus may be under-appreciated in many parts of the world. However, even in places where significant outbreaks have occurred, seroprevalence is still typically very low ( Eldin et al, 2019 ;McDonald et al, 2019 ;Popescu et al, 2020 ), making it less likely that flavivirus cross-reactive antibodies elicited by West Nile virus confounded our analysis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Susceptibility to endemic Aedes‐borne viruses among pregnant women in Risaralda, Colombia

Cardona-Ospina¹,

Trujillo²,

Jiménez-Posada³

et al. 2022

International Journal of Infectious Diseases

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Susceptibility to endemic Aedes‐borne viruses among pregnant women in Risaralda, Colombia

Cardona-Ospina¹,

Trujillo²,

Jiménez-Posada³

et al. 2022

International Journal of Infectious Diseases

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“…It is part of the Japanese encephalitis serocomplex, which includes other related viruses such as Usutu, Murray Valley encephalitis, Stratford, Alfui, Kunjin, and Saint Louis encephalitis [2]. WNV is transmitted in nature by vector-competent mosquitoes mainly belonging to the Culex genus [3]. Its transmission cycle involves several bird species and orders as main-amplifier hosts and humans, equids, and other animals as incidental, dead-end hosts [3,4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…WNV is transmitted in nature by vector-competent mosquitoes mainly belonging to the Culex genus [3]. Its transmission cycle involves several bird species and orders as main-amplifier hosts and humans, equids, and other animals as incidental, dead-end hosts [3,4]. In humans, 80% of cases are generally asymptomatic, while in about 20% of cases, infection causes mild, flu-like symptoms known as West Nile fever (WNF).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

West Nile Virus Lineage 2 Overwintering in Italy

et al. 2022

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In January 2022, West Nile virus (WNV) lineage 2 (L2) was detected in an adult female goshawk rescued near Perugia in the region of Umbria (Italy). The animal showed neurological symptoms and died 15 days after its recovery in a wildlife rescue center. This was the second case of WNV infection recorded in birds in the Umbria region during the cold season, when mosquitoes, the main WNV vectors, are usually not active. According to the National Surveillance Plan, the Umbria region is included amongst the WNV low-risk areas. The necropsy evidenced generalized pallor of the mucous membranes, mild splenomegaly, and cerebral edema. WNV L2 was detected in the brain, heart, kidney, and spleen homogenate using specific RT-PCR. Subsequently, the extracted viral RNA was sequenced. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis performed through a maximum-likelihood tree showed that the genome sequence clustered with the Italian strains within the European WNV strains among the central-southern European WNV L2 clade. These results, on the one hand, confirmed that the WNV L2 strains circulating in Italy are genetically stable and, on the other hand, evidenced a continuous WNV circulation in Italy throughout the year. In this report case, a bird-to-bird WNV transmission was suggested to support the virus overwintering. The potential transmission through the oral route in a predatory bird may explain the relatively rapid spread of WNV, as well as other flaviviruses characterized by similar transmission patterns. However, rodent-to-bird transmission or mosquito-to-bird transmission cannot be excluded, and further research is needed to better understand WNV transmission routes during the winter season in Italy.

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European College of Equine Internal Medicine consensus statement on equine flaviviridae infections in Europe

Cavalleri

Korbacska-Kutasi

Leblond

et al. 2022

Veterinary Internal Medicne

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Horses and other equids can be infected with several viruses of the family Flaviviridae, belonging to the genus Flavivirus and Hepacivirus. This consensus statement focuses on viruses with known occurrence in Europe, with the objective to summarize the current literature and formulate clinically relevant evidence‐based recommendations regarding clinical disease, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. The viruses circulating in Europe include West Nile virus, tick‐borne encephalitis virus, Usutu virus, Louping ill virus and the equine hepacivirus. West Nile virus and Usutu virus are mosquito‐borne, while tick‐borne encephalitis virus and Louping ill virus are tick‐borne. The natural route of transmission for equine hepacivirus remains speculative. West Nile virus and tick‐borne encephalitis virus can induce encephalitis in infected horses. In the British Isle, rare equine cases of encephalitis associated with Louping ill virus are reported. In contrast, equine hepacivirus infections are associated with mild acute hepatitis and possibly chronic hepatitis. Diagnosis of flavivirus infections is made primarily by serology, although cross‐reactivity occurs. Virus neutralization testing is considered the gold standard to differentiate between flavivirus infections in horses. Hepacivirus infection is detected by serum or liver RT‐PCR. No direct antiviral treatment against flavi‐ or hepacivirus infections in horses is currently available and thus, treatment is supportive. Three vaccines against West Nile virus are licensed in the European Union. Geographic expansion of flaviviruses pathogenic for equids should always be considered a realistic threat, and it would be beneficial if their detection was included in surveillance programs.

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West Nile virus in Central Europe – Pandora's box is wide open!

Cited by 5 publications

References 12 publications

Susceptibility to endemic Aedes‐borne viruses among pregnant women in Risaralda, Colombia

Susceptibility to endemic Aedes‐borne viruses among pregnant women in Risaralda, Colombia

West Nile Virus Lineage 2 Overwintering in Italy

European College of Equine Internal Medicine consensus statement on equine flaviviridae infections in Europe

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