Journal Article

Retrospective Investigation in Horses with Encephalitis Reveals Unnoticed Circulation of West Nile Virus in Brazil

Said, Rodrigo Fabiano do Carmo, Costa, Erica Azevedo, Santana, Ian Carlos Brito de, Xavier, Joilson, Pereira, Felicidade Mota, Albuquerque, Carlos Frederico Campelo de, Peterka, Cassio Roberto Leonel, Nardy, Vanessa, Silva, Luciana, Cunha, Rivaldo Venâncio da, Tosta, Stephane, Santos, Beatriz Senra Álvares da Silva, Leal e Silva de Mello, Arabela, Jesus, Ronaldo de, Guedes, Thiago Ferreira, Furtini, Ronaldo, Araújo, Emerson Luiz Lima, Cunha, Gabriel Muricy, Souza, Marcia São Pedro Leal, Filippis, Ana Maria Bispo de, Santos, Lenisa, Astete, Marcela Kelly Gómez, Sá, José Eduardo Ungar de, Menezes, Gabriela, Guimarães, Sara A. Franco, Aguiar, Nágila Rocha, Lima, Jaqueline, Oliveira, Carla de, Alcantara, Luiz Carlos Junior, Santos, George Roma, Guedes, Maria Isabel Maldonado Coelho, Nuno, Italo Coelho, Faria, Guilherme Canhestro de, Fritsch, Hegger, Drumond, Safira Rachel Milanez, Levy, Flavia, Romano, Alessandro Pecego Martins, Giovanetti, Marta, Fonseca, Vagner, Silva, Willadesmon Santos

2022

Overview

During these past years, several studies have provided serological evidence regarding the circulation of West Nile virus (WNV) in Brazil. Despite some reports, much is still unknown regarding the genomic diversity and transmission dynamics of this virus in the country. Recently, genomic monitoring activities in horses revealed the circulation of WNV in several Brazilian regions. These findings on the paucity of genomic data reinforce the need for prompt investigation of WNV infection in horses, which may precede human cases of encephalitis in Brazil. Thus, in this study, we retrospectively screened 54 suspicious WNV samples collected between 2017 and 2020 from the spinal cord and brain of horses with encephalitis and generated three new WNV genomes from the Ceará and Bahia states, located in the northeastern region of Brazil. The Bayesian reconstruction revealed that at least two independent introduction events occurred in Brazil. The first introduction event appears to be likely related to the North American outbreak, and was estimated to have occurred in March 2013.The second introduction event appears to have occurred in September 2017 and appears to be likely related to the South American outbreak. Together, our results reinforce the importance of increasing the priority of WNV genomic monitoring in equines with encephalitis in order to track the dispersion of this emerging pathogen through the country.

• Publisher: MDPI AG,MDPI
• Subject: Animals / Antibodies, Viral / Bayes Theorem / Bayesian analysis / Bayesian theory / brain / Brazil / Brazil - epidemiology / Brief Report / Causes of / Diseases / Distribution / Encephalitis / Encephalitis, Viral / Ethics / Genetic aspects / genetic variation / genome / Genomes / genomic monitoring / Genomics / Horse Diseases - epidemiology / Horses / Humans / nanopore sequencing / Outbreaks / pathogens / Phylogenetics / Retrospective Studies / Risk factors / Serology / Software / Spinal cord / Viruses / West Nile Fever - epidemiology / West Nile Fever - veterinary / West Nile virus / West Nile virus - genetics / WNV