Risk Assessment of Oropouche Virus Transmission by Mosquitoes in Europe
Oropouche virus (OROV) emerged as a significant health threat in Central and South America in 2024. Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) is considered the primary vector, while the role of mosquitoes in the transmission cycle is still unclear. This study evaluates the vector competence of 5 mosquito species common in Europe for OROV (old strain). While Culex torrentium, Culex pipiens biotype pipiens, Aedes aegypti, and Aedes japonicus showed no transmission, Aedes albopictus demonstrated low transmission at higher temperatures. Temperature-based risk analysis for areas with established A albopictus populations suggests that regions around the Mediterranean are at potential risk for OROV transmission.
Authors
- Patrick Höller (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7359-2409)
- Hanna Jöst (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6947-8334)
- Stéphanie Jansen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4623-5070)
- Unchana Lange
- A.H. Mack
- Anna Heitmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9584-0947)
- Renke Lühken (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1984-839X)
- Norbert Becker (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4536-4257)
Institutions
- Universität Hamburg (DE)
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- German Research Institute for Public Administration (DE)
- Landwirtschaftliche Untersuchungs- und Forschungsanstalt Speyer (DE)
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The Journal of Infectious Diseases
- Published
- 2025-07-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jiaf356
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Mosquito-borne diseases and control
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 7.51
Funders
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
- Bundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft
- Bundesamt für Landwirtschaft