Laboratory studies of a Brazilian strain of Aedes albopictus as a potential vector of Mayaro and Oropouche viruses

Abstract

The vector efficiency of colonized Aedes albopictus from Brazil was assessed for Mayaro (MAY) and Oropouche (ORO) viruses. Female mosquitoes, 3-4 days old, were fed on a MAY-infected hamster with a viremia level of 5.3 log10 Vero cell plaque-forming units (PFU) of virus/ml or an ORO-infected hamster circulating 7.3 log10 PFU/ml. Mayaro infection rates among fed mosquitoes were 16.9 and 11% at 6, 13 and 20 days postfeeding, respectively, and 1/2 and 2/2 infected mosquitoes transmitted virus on days 13 and 20, respectively. Only 13, 5 and 3% of mosquitoes were infected with ORO virus at 6, 13 and 20 days, respectively, and no transmission occurred. Mosquitoes were also fed on 3 dilutions of MAY virus-blood suspensions in membrane feeders. The infection rate among mosquitoes fed the highest concentration (7.7 log10 PFU/ml) was 11/13 (85%), and 5/11 (46%) infected mosquitoes transmitted virus.