Mosquitoes in the Americas Competent to Transmit Chikungunya

Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus populations from multiple areas in the Americas were found to be capable of transmitting all three tested chikungunya virus strains.

Transmitted by mosquitoes, chikungunya virus (CHIKV) has spread widely since 2004, causing massive epidemics in Africa, Asia, and Pacific and Indian Ocean islands and outbreaks in temperate Mediterranean areas of Europe (NEJM JW Infect Dis Feb 27 2008). Local transmission was first documented in the Americas in late 2013 and continues on multiple Caribbean islands. The primary vectors, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, are widespread in the Americas.

In a recent study, investigators assessed vector competence — a key attribute in determining risk for virus transmission and spread — in 22 Ae. aegypti and 13 Ae. albopictus populations field-collected from 10 countries in North, Central, and South America. Female mosquitoes were fed rabbit bl…

Reviewing Author

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

Mosquitoes in the Americas Competent to Transmit Chikungunya

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Reviewing Author