Multiple Lineages of Usutu Virus ( Flaviviridae , Flavivirus ) in Blackbirds ( Turdus merula ) and Mosquitoes ( Culex pipiens , Cx. modestus ) in the Czech Republic (2016-2019)

Usutu virus (USUV) is a flavivirus ( : ) of an African origin transmitted among its natural hosts (diverse species of birds) by mosquitoes. The virus was introduced multiple times to Europe where it caused mortality of blackbirds ( ) and certain other susceptible species of birds. In this study, we...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Microorganisms (Basel) 2019-11, Vol.7 (11), p.568
Main Authors: Hönig, Vaclav, Palus, Martin, Kaspar, Tomas, Zemanova, Marta, Majerova, Karolina, Hofmannova, Lada, Papezik, Petr, Sikutova, Silvie, Rettich, Frantisek, Hubalek, Zdenek, Rudolf, Ivo, Votypka, Jan, Modry, David, Ruzek, Daniel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aquatic insects
Birds
blackbird
Cadavers
Cell culture
Culex pipiens
culex spp
Culicidae
Epidemics
Flaviviridae
Flavivirus
Genetic variability
Genomes
Liver
Mortality
mosquito
Mosquitoes
Phylogenetics
Proteins
Ribonucleic acid
RNA
RNA polymerase
Species diversity
Turdus merula
usutu virus
Viruses
West Nile virus
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Summary:Usutu virus (USUV) is a flavivirus ( : ) of an African origin transmitted among its natural hosts (diverse species of birds) by mosquitoes. The virus was introduced multiple times to Europe where it caused mortality of blackbirds ( ) and certain other susceptible species of birds. In this study, we report detection of USUV RNA in blackbirds, and mosquitoes in the Czech Republic, and isolation of 10 new Czech USUV strains from carcasses of blackbirds in cell culture. Multiple lineages (Europe 1, 2 and Africa 3) of USUV were found in blackbirds and mosquitoes in the southeastern part of the country. A single USUV lineage (Europe 3) was found in Prague and was likely associated with increased mortalities in the local blackbird population seen in this area in 2018. USUV genomic RNA (lineage Europe 2) was detected in a pool of mosquitoes from South Bohemia (southern part of the country), where no major mortality of birds has been reported so far, and no flavivirus RNA has been found in randomly sampled cadavers of blackbirds. The obtained data contributes to our knowledge about USUV genetic variability, distribution and spread in Central Europe.
ISSN:2076-2607
2076-2607
DOI:10.3390/microorganisms7110568