Potential of Aedes albopictus to cause the emergence of arboviruses in Morocco.

Fadila Amraoui,Wiem Ben Ayed,Oumnia Himmi,Ameur Btissam,Yoann Madec,Anna-Bella Failloux,Mhammed Sarih,Chafika Faraj

doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0006997

Abstract

In 2015, the mosquito Aedes albopictus was detected in Rabat, Morocco. This invasive species can be involved in the transmission of more than 25 arboviruses. It is known that each combination of mosquito population and virus genotype leads to a specific interaction that can shape the outcome of infection. Testing the vector competence of local mosquitoes is therefore a prerequisite to assess the risks of emergence. A field-collected strain of Ae. albopictus from Morocco was experimentally infected with dengue (DENV), chikungunya (CHIKV), zika (ZIKV) and yellow fever (YFV) viruses. We found that this species can highly transmit CHIKV and to a lesser extent, DENV, ZIKV and YFV. Viruses can be detected in mosquito saliva at day 3 (CHIKV), day 14 (DENV and YFV), and day 21 (ZIKV) post-infection. These results suggest that the local transmission of these four arboviruses by Ae. albopictus newly introduced in Morocco is a likely scenario.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov APAFIS#6573-201606l412077987v2.

Highlights

Over the past decades, arboviruses caused acute emergences leading to global pandemics
The Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus is responsible for the transmission of several arboviruses such as dengue and chikungunya viruses
We demonstrated that Ae. albopictus Morocco are competent to transmit zika and yellow fever viruses in addition to the transmission of dengue and chikungunya viruses

Summary

Introduction

Arboviruses caused acute emergences leading to global pandemics. While its importance was underestimated, zika virus (ZIKV; family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus) hit Brazil in 2015 causing several million cases in the Americas [3] and severe unusual symptoms such as Guillain-Barresyndrome and congenital microcephaly. Despite the availability of an efficient vaccine 17D, yellow fever virus (YFV; family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus) continues to cause human fatalities in South America and Sub-Saharan Africa. In Africa, Ae. albopictus was first reported in the early 1990s in South Africa [10] and Nigeria [11] Thereafter, it was described in several West and Central African countries: Cameroon in 2000 [12], Equatorial Guinea in 2003 [13], Gabon in 2007 [14], Central African Republic in 2009 [15], and Republic of Congo in 2011 [16]. In North Africa, Ae. albopictus was detected in Algeria in 2010 [20] in Morocco in 2015 [21]

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