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Anderson JF, Molaei G, Fish D, Armstrong PM, Khalil N, Brudner S, Misencik MJ, Bransfield A, Olson M, Andreadis TG. Host-Feeding Behavior of Mosquitoes in the Florida Everglades. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2024. [PMID: 38648543 DOI: 10.1089/vbz.2023.0072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: West Nile virus (WNV), Everglades virus (EVEV), and five species of Orthobunyavirus were isolated from mosquitoes collected in the Everglades in 2016-2017. Prior studies of blood meals of mosquitoes in southern Florida have related findings to acquisition and transmission of EVEV, St. Louis encephalitis virus, and WNV, but not the Orthobunyavirus viruses associated with the subgenus Melanoconion of the genus Culex. Materials and Methods: In the present study, blood-fed mosquitoes were collected in the Everglades in 2016, 2017, 2021, and 2022, and from an industrial site in Naples, FL in 2017. Blood meals were identified to host species by PCR assays using mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Results: Blood meals were identified from Anopheles crucians complex and 11 mosquito species captured in the Florida Everglades and from 3 species collected from an industrial site. The largest numbers of blood-fed specimens were from Culex nigripalpus, Culex erraticus, Culex cedecei, and Aedes taeniorhynchus. Cx. erraticus fed on mammals, birds, and reptiles, particularly American alligator. This mosquito species could transmit WNV to American alligator in the wild. Cx. nigripalpus acquired blood meals primarily from birds and mammals and frequently fed on medium-sized mammals and white-tailed deer. Water and wading birds were the primary avian hosts for Cx. nigripalpus and Cx. erraticus in the Everglades. Wading birds are susceptible to WNV and could serve as reservoir hosts. Cx. cedecei fed on five species of rodents, particularly black and hispid cotton rats. EVEV and three different species of Orthobunyavirus have been isolated from the hispid cotton rat and Cx. cedecei in the Everglades. Cx. cedecei is likely acquiring and transmitting these viruses among hispid cotton rats and other rodents. The marsh rabbit was a frequent host for An. crucians complex. An. crucians complex, and other species could acquire Tensaw virus from rabbits. Conclusions: Our study contributes to a better understanding of the host and viral associations of mosquito species in southwestern Florida.
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Affiliation(s)
- John F Anderson
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Goudarz Molaei
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
- Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Durland Fish
- Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Philip M Armstrong
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Noelle Khalil
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Samuel Brudner
- Quantitative Biology Institute, Department of Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Michael J Misencik
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Angela Bransfield
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Michael Olson
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Theodore G Andreadis
- Department of Entomology and Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
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Sloyer KE, Reeves LE, Burkett-Cadena ND. Host associations of Culex panocossa (Diptera: Culicidae) in southern Florida and its implications for arbovirus transmission. J Med Entomol 2024:tjae021. [PMID: 38372693 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjae021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Culex panocossa, Dyar and Knab, an important enzootic vector of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus subtype ID in Central and South America, was found to have invaded and become established in southern Florida in 2016. No information is currently available regarding the ecology of this invasive mosquito in the United States. Here, we use PCR-based blood meal analysis to investigate vertebrate host associations of Cx. panocossa from Florida to provide information necessary for determining the potential importance of this mosquito for arbovirus transmission in the United States. Culex panocossa fed mainly upon birds (49.5%) but took a substantial fraction of blood meals from mammals (33.3%) and reptiles (17.1%). By feeding upon amplifying hosts of Everglades virus (hispid cotton rat) and eastern equine encephalitis virus (wading birds) and humans, Cx. panocossa could act as a bridge vector for these pathogenic Alphaviruses in Florida, potentially resulting in increased human disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristin E Sloyer
- Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Vero Beach, FL, USA
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA
| | - Lawrence E Reeves
- Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Vero Beach, FL, USA
| | - Nathan D Burkett-Cadena
- Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Vero Beach, FL, USA
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Burkett-Cadena ND, Fish D, Weaver S, Vittor AY. Everglades virus: an underrecognized disease-causing subtype of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus endemic to Florida, USA. J Med Entomol 2023; 60:1149-1164. [PMID: 37862065 PMCID: PMC10645373 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjad070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Revised: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Everglades virus (EVEV) is subtype II of the Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) complex (Togaviridae: Alphavirus), endemic to Florida, USA. EVEV belongs to a clade that includes both enzootic and epizootic/epidemic VEEV subtypes. Like other enzootic VEEV subtypes, muroid rodents are important vertebrate hosts for EVEV and certain mosquitoes are important vectors. The hispid cotton rat Sigmodon hispidus and cotton mouse Peromyscus gossypinus are important EVEV hosts, based on natural infection (virus isolation and high seropositivity), host competence (experimental infections), and frequency of contact with the vector. The mosquito Culex (Melanoconion) cecedei is the only confirmed vector of EVEV based upon high natural infection rates, efficient vector competence, and frequent feeding upon muroid rodents. Human disease attributed to EVEV is considered rare. However, cases of meningitis and encephalitis are recorded from multiple sites, separated by 250 km or more. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that EVEV is evolving, possibly due to changes in the mammal community. Mutations in the EVEV genome are of concern, given that epidemic strains of VEEV (subtypes IAB and IC) are derived from enzootic subtype ID, the closest genetic relative of EVEV. Should epizootic mutations arise in EVEV, the abundance of Aedes taeniorhynchus and other epizootic VEEV vectors in southern Florida provides a conducive environment for widespread transmission. Other factors that will likely influence the distribution and frequency of EVEV transmission include the establishment of Culex panocossa in Florida, Everglades restoration, mammal community decline due to the Burmese python, land use alteration by humans, and climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan D Burkett-Cadena
- Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, 200 9th St. SE, Vero Beach, FL 32962, USA
| | - Durland Fish
- Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Scott Weaver
- Department of Pathology, Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Disease, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555-0609, USA
| | - Amy Y Vittor
- Department of Medicine & Emerging Pathogens Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
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