Abstract
The Usutu virus (USUV) is a flavivirus that is drawing increasing attention because of its potential for emergence. First isolated in Africa, it was introduced into Europe where it caused significant outbreaks in birds, such as in Austria in 2001. Since then, its geographical distribution has rapidly expanded, with increased circulation, especially in the last few years. Similar to West Nile virus (WNV), the USUV enzootic transmission cycle involves Culex mosquitoes as vectors, and birds as amplifying reservoir hosts, with humans and other mammals likely being dead-end hosts. A similarity in the ecology of these two viruses, which co-circulate in several European countries, highlights USUV’s potential to become an important human pathogen. While USUV has had a severe impact on the blackbird population, the number of human cases remains low, with most infections being asymptomatic. However, some rare cases of neurological disease have been described, both in healthy and immuno-compromised patients. Here, we will discuss the transmission dynamics and the current state of USUV circulation in Europe.
Highlights
The dramatic outbreaks and global spread of the chikungunya virus (CHIKV) and the Zika virus (ZIKV) illustrate the danger that emerging arboviruses represent
The results indicated that Aedes albopictus exhibits a lower competence for USUV [45], the virus can replicate in the body and escape the midgut barrier [50]
USUV RNA was detected by RT-PCR in cerebrospinal fluid of patients suffering from meningoencephalitis, suggesting that the virus may establish an infection in the brain [83]
Summary
The dramatic outbreaks and global spread of the chikungunya virus (CHIKV) and the Zika virus (ZIKV) illustrate the danger that emerging arboviruses represent. Given the plethora of mosquito-transmitted viruses, which have been identified to date, and the known ability of RNA viruses to mutate rapidly to adapt to new environments, it is likely that other arboviruses will emerge in the decades. The Usutu virus (USUV), an arbovirus from the Flaviviridae family, genus Flavivirus, has recently garnered a great deal of attention from the scientific community, since its emergence in Europe. USUV has been mostly associated with disease in birds, with spectacular episodes of mass mortality occurring in Central Europe; but it can infect humans, and in some rare cases, it can be associated with neurological complications. We will summarize the current knowledge on USUV, with particular emphasis on the increased circulation in Europe in recent years, the dynamics of transmission, and the human clinical cases described to date
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