Seroprevalence of Toscana virus in dogs from Corsica, France.

Mustapha Dahmani,Sébastien Grech-Angelini,Rémi N Charrel,Sulaf Alwassouf,Jean-Lou Marié,Bernard Davoust

doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1665-4

Abstract

BackgroundToscana virus (TOSV) is an arbovirus belonging to the Bunyaviridae, a family of negative-stranded, enveloped RNA viruses. The virus can be transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected female sand fly of the genus Phlebotomus. Infections are usually asymptomatic but the virus is known to cause aseptic meningitis and/or meningo-encephalitis in the Mediterranean countries. Dogs are good sentinels for detection of viral circulation and are more easily accessible than wild animals.FindingsIn 2013 and 2014, we collected sera from 231 adult dogs living in 26 counties in two departments in Corsica, a French island in the Mediterranean. The virus microneutralization-based seroprevalence assay revealed a seropositivity of 3.9 % dogs on the eastern coast of Corsica.ConclusionsOur study confirms the circulation of TOSV in Corsica. Accordingly, in geographical areas where dogs possess TOSV neutralizing antibodies, direct and indirect TOSV diagnosis should be implemented in patients presenting with febrile illnesses and central nervous system infections such as meningitis and encephalitis.

Highlights

Toscana virus (TOSV) is an arbovirus belonging to the Bunyaviridae, a family of negative-stranded, enveloped RNA viruses
Our study confirms the circulation of TOSV in Corsica
In geographical areas where dogs possess TOSV neutralizing antibodies, direct and indirect TOSV diagnosis should be implemented in patients presenting with febrile illnesses and central nervous system infections such as meningitis and encephalitis

Summary

Introduction

Toscana virus (TOSV) is an arbovirus belonging to the Bunyaviridae, a family of negative-stranded, enveloped RNA viruses. Infections are usually asymptomatic but the virus is known to cause aseptic meningitis and/or meningo-encephalitis in the Mediterranean countries. The infection has previously been reported in countries located on the northern shores of the Mediterranean Sea (Italy, Croatia, France, Greece, Portugal and Spain), as well as in the east (Cyprus and Turkey) [1] and, recently, from North Africa (Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria) [2, 3]. It is believed that asymptomatic infections are frequent, TOSV is an important cause of aseptic meningitis and meningoencephalitis, during the warm season (April to October) when sand flies are active [1]. In France, the first case of Toscana virus infection was reported in a German tourist returning from the region of Marseille, south-eastern. In France several autochthonous cases of TOSV infection have been described causing either meningitis [5, 6] or encephalitis [7]. Myositis was reported as an additional clinical complication of TOSV virus [8]

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