scholarly journals Zika virus and temperature modulate Elizabethkingia anophelis in Aedes albopictus

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria G. Onyango ◽  
Rachel Lange ◽  
Sean Bialosuknia ◽  
Anne Payne ◽  
Nicholas Mathias ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Negative Correlation ◽  
Blood Meal ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Vero Cells ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Vector Borne ◽  
Basal Immunity ◽  
Diurnal Temperatures

Abstract Background Vector-borne pathogens must survive and replicate in the hostile environment of an insect’s midgut before successful dissemination. Midgut microbiota interfere with pathogen infection by activating the basal immunity of the mosquito and by synthesizing pathogen-inhibitory metabolites. Methods The goal of this study was to assess the influence of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection and increased temperature on Aedes albopictus midgut microbiota. Aedes albopictus were reared at diurnal temperatures of day 28 °C/night 24 °C (L) or day 30 °C/night 26 °C (M). The mosquitoes were given infectious blood meals with 2.0 × 108 PFU/ml ZIKV, and 16S rRNA sequencing was performed on midguts at 7 days post-infectious blood meal exposure. Results Our findings demonstrate that Elizabethkingia anophelis albopictus was associated with Ae. albopictus midguts exposed to ZIKV infectious blood meal. We observed a negative correlation between ZIKV and E. anophelis albopictus in the midguts of Ae. albopictus. Supplemental feeding of Ae. albopictus with E. anophelis aegypti and ZIKV resulted in reduced ZIKV infection rates. Reduced viral loads were detected in Vero cells that were sequentially infected with E. anophelis aegypti and ZIKV, dengue virus (DENV), or chikungunya virus (CHIKV). Conclusions Our findings demonstrate the influence of ZIKV infection and temperature on the Ae. albopictus microbiome along with a negative correlation between ZIKV and E. anophelis albopictus. Our results have important implications for controlling vector-borne pathogens. Graphical Abstract

scholarly journals Zika Virus Infection in Tourists Travelling to Thailand: Case Series Report

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Natàlia Romaní ◽  
Marie Antoinette Frick ◽  
Elena Sulleiro ◽  
Carlota Rodó ◽  
María Espiau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Zika Virus ◽  
Clinical Signs ◽  
Case Series ◽  
World Health ◽  
Prenatally Exposed ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Case Series Report ◽  
Vector Borne ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Health Care Monitoring

Thailand is a popular tourist destination where Zika virus (ZIKV) transmission is currently active. To our knowledge, there are no reports of ZIKV infection imported from Thailand and affecting children. Here, we describe the clinical and microbiological findings in three cases of vector-borne ZIKV infection: An 11-year-old boy, a 2-year-old girl, and her pregnant mother, this last case leading to the prenatal exposure of her second baby to ZIKV in the second trimester of pregnancy. All patients were diagnosed after traveling to Thailand between September 2019 and January 2020. No complications were detected in any patient at follow-up, and the prenatally exposed fetus showed no abnormalities during intensive antenatal health care monitoring. On postnatal study, there were no clinical signs or microbiological findings of mother-to-child ZIKV transmission. ZIKV IgG was initially positive, but seroreversion occurred at 4 months of life. This report describes the clinical and serological evolution of vector-borne ZIKV infection occurring in dengue-naïve tourists returning from Thailand. The World Health Organization currently recommends that pre-travel advice to prevent arbovirus infection should be maintained in travelers to Southeast Asia.

scholarly journals Development and Validation of a Phenotypic High-Content Imaging Assay for Assessing the Antiviral Activity of Small-Molecule Inhibitors Targeting Zika Virus

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean A. Bernatchez ◽  
Zunhua Yang ◽  
Michael Coste ◽  
Jerry Li ◽  
Sungjun Beck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Zika Virus ◽  
Cytopathic Effect ◽  
Morphological Changes ◽  
Vero Cells ◽  
Label Free ◽  
Screening Assay ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
High Content Imaging ◽  
Compound Libraries ◽  
Antiviral Activities

ABSTRACT Zika virus (ZIKV) has been linked to the development of microcephaly in newborns, as well as Guillain-Barré syndrome. There are currently no drugs available to treat ZIKV infection, and accordingly, there is an unmet medical need for the discovery of new therapies. High-throughput drug screening efforts focusing on indirect readouts of cell viability are prone to a higher frequency of false positives in cases where the virus is viable in the cell but the cytopathic effect (CPE) is reduced or delayed. Here, we describe a fast and label-free phenotypic high-content imaging assay to detect cells affected by the virus-induced CPE using automated imaging and analysis. Protection from the CPE correlates with a decrease in viral antigen production, as observed by immunofluorescence. We trained our assay using a collection of nucleoside analogues with activity against ZIKV; the previously reported antiviral activities of 2′-C-methylribonucleosides and ribavirin against the Zika virus in Vero cells were confirmed using our developed method. To validate the ability of our assay to reveal new anti-ZIKV compounds, we profiled a novel library of 24 natural product derivatives and found compound 1 to be an inhibitor of the ZIKV-induced cytopathic effect; the activity of the compound was confirmed in human fetal neural stem cells (NSCs). The described technique can be easily leveraged as a primary screening assay for profiling of the activities of large compound libraries against ZIKV and can be expanded to other ZIKV strains and other cell lines displaying morphological changes upon ZIKV infection.

scholarly journals Surveillance of Zika virus infection in the EU/EEA, June 2015 to January 2017

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (41) ◽  
Author(s):  
G Spiteri ◽  
B Sudre ◽  
A Septfons ◽  
J Beauté ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Zika Virus ◽  
European Economic Area ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Large Outbreak ◽  
Imported Cases ◽  
Efficient Vector ◽  
Vector Borne ◽  
Almost All ◽  
The Eu

Surveillance of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) was implemented in 2016 in response to the large outbreak reported in the Americas in 2015 associated with an increased number of infants born with microcephaly. Between June 2015 and January 2017, 21 EU/EEA countries reported 2,133 confirmed cases of ZIKV infection, of whom 106 were pregnant women. Cases infected in the Caribbean constituted 71% of reported cases. Almost all cases (99%) were most probably infected by mosquito bite during travel outside continental Europe, while only 1% were transmitted sexually. Considering that 584 imported cases were reported between May and October 2016 among residents of areas with established presence of Aedes albopictus, the absence of autochthonous vector-borne cases suggests that Ae. albopictus is not an efficient vector for ZIKV infection.

scholarly journals Evaluating the Safety of West Nile Virus Immunity During Congenital Zika Virus Infection in Mice

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua A. Acklin ◽  
Javier D. Cattle ◽  
Arianna S. Moss ◽  
Julia A. Brown ◽  
Gregory A. Foster ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Western Hemisphere ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Maternal Brain ◽  
Significant Public Health ◽  
Virus Zika ◽  
Murine Pregnancy

Antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) is a phenomenon that occurs when cross-reactive antibodies generated from a previous flaviviral infection increase the pathogenesis of a related virus. Zika virus (ZIKV) is the most recent flavivirus introduced to the Western Hemisphere and has become a significant public health threat due to the unanticipated impact on the developing fetus. West Nile virus (WNV) is the primary flavivirus that circulates in North America, and we and others have shown that antibodies against WNV are cross-reactive to ZIKV. Thus, there is concern that WNV immunity could increase the risk of severe ZIKV infection, particularly during pregnancy. In this study, we examined the extent to which WNV antibodies could impact ZIKV pathogenesis in a murine pregnancy model. To test this, we passively transferred WNV antibodies into pregnant Stat2-/- mice on E6.5 prior to infection with ZIKV. Evaluation of pregnant dams showed weight loss following ZIKV infection; however, no differences in maternal weights or viral loads in the maternal brain, spleen, or spinal cord were observed in the presence of WNV antibodies. Resorption rates, and other fetal parameters, including fetal and placental size, were similarly unaffected. Further, the presence of WNV antibodies did not significantly alter the viral load or the inflammatory response in the placenta or the fetus in response to ZIKV. Our data suggest that pre-existing WNV immunity may not significantly impact the pathogenesis of ZIKV infection during pregnancy. Our findings are promising for the safety of implementing WNV vaccines in the continental US.

scholarly journals Experimental investigation of the susceptibility of Italian Culex pipiens mosquitoes to Zika virus infection

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (35) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Boccolini ◽  
Luciano Toma ◽  
Marco Di Luca ◽  
Francesco Severini ◽  
R Romi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Investigation ◽  
Virus Infection ◽  
Blood Meal ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Positive Control ◽  
The Body ◽  
Italian Population ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Time Points

We investigated the susceptibility of an Italian population of Culex pipiens mosquitoes to Zika virus (ZIKV) infection, tested in parallel with Aedes aegypti, as a positive control. We analysed mosquitoes at 0, 3, 7, 10, 14, 20 and 24 days after an infectious blood meal. Viral RNA was detected in the body of Cx. pipiens up to three days post-infection, but not at later time points. Our results indicate that Cx. pipiens is not susceptible to ZIKV infection.

scholarly journals Molecular Responses to the Zika Virus in Mosquitoes

Pathogens ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catalina Alfonso-Parra ◽  
Frank Avila
Keyword(s):  
Aedes Aegypti ◽  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Birth Defects ◽  
Molecular Interactions ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Neurological Complications ◽  
Mosquito Vector ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Molecular Responses ◽  
The Pacific

The Zika virus (ZIKV), originally discovered in 1947, did not become a major concern until the virus swept across the Pacific and into the Americas in the last decade, bringing with it news of neurological complications and birth defects in ZIKV affected areas. This prompted researchers to dissect the molecular interactions between ZIKV and the mosquito vector in an attempt to better understand not only the changes that occur upon infection, but to also identify molecules that may potentially enhance or suppress a mosquito’s ability to become infected and/or transmit the virus. Here, we review what is currently known regarding ZIKV-mosquito molecular interactions, focusing on ZIKV infection of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, the primary species implicated in transmitting ZIKV during the recent outbreaks.

scholarly journals Infection via mosquito bite alters Zika virus replication kinetics in rhesus macaques

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dawn M. Dudley ◽  
Christina M. Newman ◽  
Joseph Lalli ◽  
Laurel M. Stewart ◽  
Michelle R. Koenig ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Distribution ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Rhesus Macaques ◽  
Human Infection ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Mosquito Bite ◽  
Viral Loads ◽  
Vector Borne

ABSTRACTFor more than three decades it has been recognized that small amounts of vector saliva can significantly alter the infectivity of vector-borne pathogens and subsequent in vivo dynamics. Mouse and nonhuman primate models now serve as useful platforms to study Zika virus (ZIKV) pathogenesis, candidate therapies, and vaccines, but they rely on needle inoculation of virus: the effects of mosquito-borne infection on disease outcome have not been explored in these models. To model vector-borne transmission of ZIKV in nonhuman primates, we infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with ZIKV and allowed them to feed on four ZIKV-naive rhesus macaques. We compared ZIKV replication kinetics and tissue distribution between animals that were subcutaneously inoculated with 104 plaque-forming units of ZIKV and those that were exposed via mosquito bite. Here, we show that infection via mosquito bite delays ZIKV replication to peak viral loads in rhesus macaques. Importantly, in mosquito-infected animals ZIKV tissue distribution was limited to hemolymphatic tissues, female reproductive tract tissues, kidney, and liver, potentially emulating key features of human ZIKV infections, most of which are characterized by mild or asymptomatic disease. This newly developed system will be valuable for studying ZIKV disease because it more closely mimics human infection by mosquito bite than needle-based inoculations.

scholarly journals Travel-associated and autochthonous Zika virus infection in mainland France, 1 January to 15 July 2016

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (32) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Septfons ◽  
I Leparc-Goffart ◽  
E Couturier ◽  
F Franke ◽  
J Deniau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virus Infection ◽  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Surveillance System ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Risk Of Infection ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Zika Virus Infection ◽  
And Control

During summer 2016, all the conditions for local mosquito-borne transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) are met in mainland France: a competent vector, Aedes albopictus, a large number of travellers returning from ZIKV-affected areas, and an immunologically naive population. From 1 January to 15 July 2016, 625 persons with evidence of recent ZIKV infection were reported in mainland France. We describe the surveillance system in place and control measures implemented to reduce the risk of infection.

scholarly journals Experimental studies of susceptibility of Italian Aedes albopictus to Zika virus

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (18) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Di Luca ◽  
Francesco Severini ◽  
Luciano Toma ◽  
Daniela Boccolini ◽  
Roberto Romi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Incubation Period ◽  
Aedes Albopictus ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Transmission Rate ◽  
Vector Competence ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Italian Population ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Extrinsic Incubation Period ◽  
Dissemination Rate

We report a study on vector competence of an Italian population of Aedes albopictus for Zika virus (ZIKV). Ae. albopictus was susceptible to ZIKV infection (infection rate: 10%), and the virus could disseminate and was secreted in the mosquito’s saliva (dissemination rate: 29%; transmission rate: 29%) after an extrinsic incubation period of 11 days. The observed vector competence was lower than that of an Ae. aegypti colony tested in parallel.

scholarly journals Jak Inhibitors Modulate Production of Replication Competent Zika Virus in Human Hofbauer, Trophoblasts, and Neuroblastoma cells

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Gavegnano ◽  
Leda C. Bassit ◽  
Bryan D. Cox ◽  
Hui-Mien Hsiao ◽  
Erica L. Johnson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Zika Virus ◽  
Neuroblastoma Cells ◽  
Nucleoside Analogs ◽  
Vero Cells ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Extracellular Virus ◽  
Hla Dr ◽  
Virion Structure ◽  
Hofbauer Cells ◽  
The Impact

Zika Virus (ZIKV) is a Flavivirus that has been implicated in brain deformations, birth defects, and microcephaly of unborn fetuses and associated with Guillain-Barre syndrome.  Mechanisms responsible for transmission of ZIKV across the placenta to the fetus are incompletely understood.  Herein, we define key events modulating infection in clinically relevant cells, including primary placental macrophages (human hofbauer cells; HC), trophoblasts, and neuroblastoma cells. Consistent with previous findings, HC and trophoblasts are permissive to ZIKV infection. Decrease of interferon signaling by Jak 1/2 inhibition (via ruxolitinib) significantly increased ZIKV replicationin HC, trophoblasts, and neuroblasts. Enhanced ZIKV production in ruxolitinib treated HC was associated with increased expression of HLA-DR and DC-SIGN. Nucleoside analogs blocked ruxolitinib-mediated production of extracellular virus. Although low-level ZIKV infection occurred in untreated HC and trophoblasts, the produced virus was incapable of infecting naïve Vero cells.  These deficient virions from untreated HC present “thin-coats” suggesting immature virion structure. Blocking Jak 1/2 signaling (with ruxolitinib) restored replication competence as virions produced under these conditions confer CPE in naïve Vero cells.  These data demonstrate that Jak-STAT signaling directly impacts the ability of primary placental cells to produce replication competent virus and is a key gatekeeper in production of mature virions in clinically relevant cells including HC and trophoblasts. Design of targeted agents to prevent ZIKV replication in the placenta should consider Jak 1/2 signaling and the impact of its block on ZIKV infection and subsequent transmission to the fetus. 

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