Origin and Spread of the Dengue Virus Type 1, Genotype V in Senegal, 2015–2019

Idrissa Dieng,Moussa Moïse Diagne,Amadou Alpha Sall,Marielton Dos Passos Cunha,Ousmane Faye,Paolo Marinho De Andrade Zanotto,Pape Mbacké Sembène,Oumar Faye

doi:10.3390/v13010057

Idrissa Dieng, Moussa Moïse Diagne + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/v13010057

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Abstract

Dengue virus (DENV) is the most widespread arthropod-borne virus, with the number and severity of outbreaks increasing worldwide in recent decades. Dengue is caused by genetically distinct serotypes, DENV-1–4. Here, we present data on DENV-1, isolated from patients with dengue fever during an outbreak in Senegal and Mali (Western Africa) in 2015–2019, that were analyzed by sequencing the envelope (E) gene. The emergence and the dynamics of DENV-1 in Western Africa were inferred by using maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods. The DENV-1 grouped into a monophyletic cluster that was closely related to those from Southeast Asia. The virus appears to have been introduced directly into Medina Gounass (Suburb of Dakar), Senegal (location probability = 0.301, posterior = 0.76). The introduction of the virus in Senegal occurred around 2014 (95% HPD = 2012.88–2014.84), and subsequently, the virus moved to regions within Senegal (e.g., Louga and Fatick), causing intense outbreaks in the subsequent years. The virus appears to have been introduced in Mali (a neighboring country) after its introduction in Senegal. In conclusion, we present evidence that the outbreak caused by DENV-1 in urban environments in Senegal and Mali after 2015 was caused by a single viral introduction from Asia.

Highlights

The dengue virus (DENV-1–4) is the world’s most important arbovirus transmitted by infected Aedes mosquitoes
Dengue virus infection has diverse clinical manifestations, which range from asymptomatic illness to hemorrhagic fever that can culminate in death [11]
In order to gain insight about Dengue virus (DENV)-1 circulation in Western Africa, we investigated the origin, the mode of spread and the transmission dynamics of DENV-1 circulating in Senegal between 2015 to 2019 (Figure 1) using viral samples obtained across Senegal and

Summary

Introduction

The dengue virus (DENV-1–4) is the world’s most important arbovirus transmitted by infected Aedes mosquitoes. It is endemic in more than 100 countries, and it is estimated that 50 million cases occur annually worldwide [1,2]. DENV is an enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that belongs to the genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae [4,5]. Its genome has a single open reading frame encoding for three structural proteins (capsid (C), membrane (M) and envelope (E)) and seven non-structural (NS) proteins (NS1, NS2A, NS2B, NS3, NS4A, NS4B and NS5) [6]. Dengue virus infection has diverse clinical manifestations, which range from asymptomatic illness to hemorrhagic fever that can culminate in death [11]

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