Emergence of genotype III St. Louis encephalitis virus in the western United States potentially linked to a wetland in Argentina
- PMID: 38043673
- DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.107088
Emergence of genotype III St. Louis encephalitis virus in the western United States potentially linked to a wetland in Argentina
Abstract
St. Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) is endemic in the Americas and its transmission networks involve Culex mosquitoes and avian species. In 2015, a human encephalitis outbreak took place in Arizona and California, indicating the re-emergence of this pathogen in the US. Viral strains isolated in that outbreak belong to genotype III SLEV previously detected only in South America. In this study, genotype III SLEV was detected in mosquitoes collected in Mar Chiquita Lagoon (Córdoba, Argentina), an overwintering site for numerous migratory bird species. The genotype III SLEV sequence detected in this site shares the closest known ancestor with those introduced in Arizona in 2015. Our results highlight the potential significance of wetlands as key sites for arbovirus maintenance and emergence.
Keywords: Argentina; Culex; Genotype; Mar chiquita lagoon; Phylogeographic; St. louis encephalitis virus.
Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.
Conflict of interest statement
Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
