Since its initial isolation in Uganda in 1937 through the present, West Nile virus (WNV) has become an important cause of human and animal disease worldwide. WNV, an enveloped virus of the genus Flavivirus, is naturally maintained in an enzootic cycle between birds and mosquitoes, with occasional epizootic spillover causing disease in humans and horses. The mosquito vectors for WNV are widely distributed worldwide, and the known geographic range of WNV transmission and disease has continued to increase over the past 77 years. While most human infections with WNV are asymptomatic, severe neurological disease may develop resulting in long-term sequelae or death. Surveillance and preventive measures are an ongoing need to reduce the public health impact of WNV in areas with the potential for transmission.

/pdf/the-global-ecology-and-epidemiology-of-west-nile-virus-xhb3d6xgpv.pdf

The global ecology and epidemiology of West Nile virus.

The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is a highly successful invasive species that transmits a number of human viral diseases, including dengue and Chikungunya fevers. This species has a large genome with significant population-based size variation. The complete genome sequence was determined for the Foshan strain, an established laboratory colony derived from wild mosquitoes from southeastern China, a region within the historical range of the origin of the species. The genome comprises 1,967 Mb, the largest mosquito genome sequenced to date, and its size results principally from an abundance of repetitive DNA classes. In addition, expansions of the numbers of members in gene families involved in insecticide-resistance mechanisms, diapause, sex determination, immunity, and olfaction also contribute to the larger size. Portions of integrated flavivirus-like genomes support a shared evolutionary history of association of these viruses with their vector. The large genome repertory may contribute to the adaptability and success of Ae. albopictus as an invasive species.

http://www.pnas.org/content/112/44/E5907.full.pdf

Genome sequence of the Asian Tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, reveals insights into its biology, genetics, and evolution

There has been a dramatic increase in the number of insect-specific flaviviruses (ISFs) discovered in the last decade. Historically, these viruses have generated limited interest due to their inability to infect vertebrate cells. This viewpoint has changed in recent years because some ISFs have been shown to enhance or suppress the replication of medically important flaviviruses in co-infected mosquito cells. Additionally, comparative studies between ISFs and medically important flaviviruses can provide a unique perspective as to why some flaviviruses possess the ability to infect and cause devastating disease in humans while others do not. ISFs have been isolated exclusively from mosquitoes in nature but the detection of ISF-like sequences in sandflies and chironomids indicates that they may also infect other dipterans. ISFs can be divided into two distinct phylogenetic groups. The first group currently consists of approximately 12 viruses and includes cell fusing agent virus, Kamiti River virus and Culex flavivirus. These viruses are phylogenetically distinct from all other known flaviviruses. The second group, which is apparently not monophyletic, currently consists of nine viruses and includes Chaoyang virus, Nounane virus and Lammi virus. These viruses phylogenetically affiliate with mosquito/vertebrate flaviviruses despite their apparent insect-restricted phenotype. This article provides a review of the discovery, host range, mode of transmission, superinfection exclusion ability and genomic organization of ISFs. This article also attempts to clarify the ISF nomenclature because some of these viruses have been assigned more than one name due to their simultaneous discoveries by independent research groups.

https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/7/4/1927/pdf

Insect-specific flaviviruses: a systematic review of their discovery, host range, mode of transmission, superinfection exclusion potential and genomic organization.

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), especially those transmitted by mosquitoes, are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in humans and animals worldwide. Recent discoveries indicate that mosquitoes are naturally infected with a wide range of other viruses, many within taxa occupied by arboviruses that are considered insect-specific. Over the past ten years there has been a dramatic increase in the literature describing novel insect-specific virus detection in mosquitoes, which has provided new insights about viral diversity and evolution, including that of arboviruses. It has also raised questions about what effects the mosquito virome has on arbovirus transmission. Additionally, the discovery of these new viruses has generated interest in their potential use as biological control agents as well as novel vaccine platforms. The arbovirus community will benefit from the growing database of knowledge concerning these newly described viral endosymbionts, as their impacts will likely be far reaching.

https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/7/9/2851/pdf

Insect-Specific Virus Discovery: Significance for the Arbovirus Community

Anthropogenic landscape transformation has an important effect on vector-borne pathogen transmission. However, the effects of urbanization on mosquito communities are still only poorly known. Here, we evaluate how land-use characteristics are related to the abundance and community composition of mosquitoes in an area with endemic circulation of numerous mosquito-borne pathogens. We collected 340 829 female mosquitoes belonging to 13 species at 45 localities spatially grouped in 15 trios formed by 1 urban, 1 rural and 1 natural area. Mosquito abundance and species richness were greater in natural and rural areas than in urban areas. Environmental factors including land use, vegetation and hydrological characteristics were related to mosquito abundance and community composition. Given the differing competences of each species in pathogen transmission, these results provide valuable information on the transmission potential of mosquito-borne pathogens that will be of great use in public and animal health management by allowing, for instance, the identification of the priority areas for pathogen surveillance and vector control.

/pdf/effects-of-landscape-anthropization-on-mosquito-community-18e8ov9aj2.pdf

Effects of landscape anthropization on mosquito community composition and abundance

To ascertain the presence of West Nile virus (WNV), we sampled mosquitoes in 2006 in locations in southern Spain where humans had been infected. WNV genomic RNA was detected in 1 pool from unfed female Culex pipiens mosquitoes. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that this sequence cannot be assigned to previously described lineages of WNV.

/pdf/putative-new-lineage-of-west-nile-virus-spain-85wc6l24po.pdf

Putative new lineage of west nile virus, Spain.

West Nile virus lineage 1 (similar to the strains obtained from golden eagles in Spain, 2007) and Usutu virus (similar to the strains obtained from Culex pipiens in Spain, 2006) were detected in pools from Culex perexiguus collected in southern Spain in 2008 and 2009, respectively. This is the first detection and isolation of West Nile virus lineage 1 from mosquitoes in Spain.

/pdf/west-nile-and-usutu-viruses-in-mosquitoes-in-spain-2008-2009-s9axy23l89.pdf

West Nile and Usutu viruses in mosquitoes in Spain, 2008-2009.

We report the characterization of three novel flaviviruses isolated in Spain. Marisma Mosquito virus, a novel mosquito borne virus, was isolated from Ochlerotatus caspius mosquitoes; Spanish Ochlerotatus flavivirus and Spanish Culex flavivirus, two novel insect flaviviruses, were isolated from Oc. caspius and Culex pipiens, respectively. During this investigation, we designed a sensitive RT-nested polymerase chain reaction method that amplifies a 1019bp fragment of the flavivirus NS5 gene and could be directly used in clinical or environmental samples for flavivirus characterization and surveillance. Analysis of the sequence generated from that amplicon contains enough phylogenetic information for proper taxonomic studies. Moreover, the use of this tool allowed the detection of additional flavivirus DNA forms in Culex, Culiseta, and Ochlerotatus mosquitoes.

/pdf/novel-flaviviruses-detected-in-different-species-of-5dhx1zzalq.pdf

Novel flaviviruses detected in different species of mosquitoes in Spain.

A gynandromorph of Ochlerotatus (Ochlerotatus) caspius (Pallas, 1771) (Diptera: Culicidae) from Huelva (Spain) Abstract: The first gynandromorph of Ochlerotatus caspius is described. The specimen was collected in 2005 at a CO2 baited light trap in Huelva. It shows bipolar gynandromorphism, with a female head and male thorax, abdomen and genitalia. The re- cord of species with gynandromorphic specimens is updated, raising the total to 47 species and 11 genera.

http://sea-entomologia.org/Publicaciones/PDF/BOLN42/439_441BSEA42NBGionandromorfo.pdf

Un ginandromorfo de "Ochlerotatus (Ochlerotatus) caspius" (Pallas, 1771) (Diptera: Culicidae) de Huelva (España)

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Putative new lineage of west nile virus, Spain.

West Nile and Usutu viruses in mosquitoes in Spain, 2008-2009.

Novel flaviviruses detected in different species of mosquitoes in Spain.

Un ginandromorfo de "Ochlerotatus (Ochlerotatus) caspius" (Pallas, 1771) (Diptera: Culicidae) de Huelva (España)