Variation in Aedes Aegypti Mosquito Competence for Zika Virus Transmission

Overview

Journal Emerg Infect Dis

Specialty Infectious Diseases

Date 2017 Mar 14

PMID 28287375

Citations 112

Authors

Christopher M Roundy

Sasha R Azar

Shannan L Rossi

Jing H Huang

Grace Leal

Ruimei Yun

Ildefonso Fernandez-Salas

Christopher J Vitek

Igor A D Paploski

Uriel Kitron

Guilherme S Ribeiro

Kathryn A Hanley

Scott C Weaver

Nikos Vasilakis

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

To test whether Zika virus has adapted for more efficient transmission by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, leading to recent urban outbreaks, we fed mosquitoes from Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and the United States artificial blood meals containing 1 of 3 Zika virus strains (Senegal, Cambodia, Mexico) and monitored infection, dissemination, and virus in saliva. Contrary to our hypothesis, Cambodia and Mexica strains were less infectious than the Senegal strain. Only mosquitoes from the Dominican Republic transmitted the Cambodia and Mexica strains. However, blood meals from viremic mice were more infectious than artificial blood meals of comparable doses; the Cambodia strain was not transmitted by mosquitoes from Brazil after artificial blood meals, whereas 61% transmission occurred after a murine blood meal (saliva titers up to 4 log infectious units/collection). Although regional origins of vector populations and virus strain influence transmission efficiency, Ae. aegypti mosquitoes appear to be competent vectors of Zika virus in several regions of the Americas.

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