Abstract
Kasokero virus (KASV; genus Orthonairovirus) was first isolated in 1977 at Uganda Virus Research Institute from serum collected from Rousettus aegyptiacus bats captured at Kasokero Cave, Uganda. During virus characterization studies at the institute, 4 laboratory-associated infections resulted in mild to severe disease. Although orthonairoviruses are typically associated with vertebrate and tick hosts, a tick vector of KASV never has been reported. We tested 786 Ornithodoros (Reticulinasus) faini tick pools (3,930 ticks) for KASV. The ticks were collected from a large R. aegyptiacus bat roosting site in western Uganda. We detected KASV RNA in 43 tick pools and recovered 2 infectious isolates, 1 of which was derived from host blood–depleted ticks. Our findings suggest that KASV is maintained in an enzootic transmission cycle involving O. (R.) faini ticks and R. aegyptiacus bats and has the potential for incidental virus spillover to humans.
Highlights
Kasokero virus (KASV; genus Orthonairovirus) was first isolated in 1977 at Uganda Virus Research Institute from serum collected from Rousettus aegyptiacus bats captured at Kasokero Cave, Uganda
We found no trace of R. aegyptiacus blood in tick pool UGA-Tick-20170048, indicating that the 5 ticks in this pool had not recently taken a blood meal from an actively KASV-infected R. aegyptiacus bat
We detected KASV RNA in 43 O. (R.) faini tick pools collected from a large R. aegyptiacus bat colony at Python Cave, Uganda, over a 4-year span
Summary
Kasokero virus (KASV; genus Orthonairovirus) was first isolated in 1977 at Uganda Virus Research Institute from serum collected from Rousettus aegyptiacus bats captured at Kasokero Cave, Uganda. (R.) faini ticks and R. aegyptiacus bats and has the potential for incidental virus spillover to humans. KASV was first isolated in 1977 by scientists at Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) from 2.7% (2/74) of serum samples collected from R. aegyptiacus. Chiropteran ticks typically exhibit high host-specificity [9,14], miners, researchers, and other persons entering R. aegyptiacus bat roosts have reported being bitten by O. (R.) faini ticks are likely to be involved in the enzootic transmission and maintenance of KASV and have the potential to be vectors for virus spillover into humans. (R.) faini ticks collected in Lanner Gorge Cave (22.450°S, 31.150°E) in South Africa, where R. aegyptiacus bats roosted. Members of the team that entered Lannar Gorge Cave were bitten by ticks, and in 2 team members, a moderately severe, transient febrile illness developed with headache, malaise, and myalgia a few days later; they refused to seek medical attention or to donate blood samples for virologic examination
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