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Viruses
Special Issues
Arboviruses and Climate
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Arboviruses and Climate

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "Invertebrate Viruses".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 December 2023) | Viewed by 4710

Special Issue Editors

Dr. José Lourenço

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Biosystems and Integrative Sciences Institute, Edificio TecLabs, Campus da FCUL, Lisboa, Portugal
2. Católica Biomedical Research Centre, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: ecology of infectious disease; computational biology
Dr. Marta Giovanetti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Sciences and Technologies for Sustainable Development and One Health, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
2. Instituto Rene Rachou Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Belo Horizonte 30190-009, MG, Brazil
Interests: phylogenetic; phylodynamic; molecular evolution; genomic surveillance; WGS; emerging and re-emerging viral pathogens
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Global changes in environmental conditions that favour a closer proximity between vector and host populations are facilitating the spread of arboviruses (arthropod-borne viruses) to both humans and other animals. These processes, which include climate change, urbanisation, trade, deforestation and migration, are interacting and evolving, creating a complex landscape of current and future transmission risk. For example, the recent emergence (2013-2014) and epidemic spread of the mosquito-borne Zika and chikungunya viruses has caused severe health and economic impacts in Latin America. Tick-borne viruses, although often receiving less attention by the research community compared to mosquito-borne viruses, are also on the rise (e.g., the Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever virus and African swine fever virus).

The evolutionary and host–pathogen history of arboviruses is vastly diverse, characterised by different geographical origins and current circulation ranges, a multitude of host and vector species, and even the presence or absence of antigenic variation. Universally, the spatiotemporal dynamics of arboviruses are primarily governed by the interplay between virus, vector and host. On the vector side, carrying capacity and seasonal oscillations in abundance are influenced by many biotic and abiotic factors. Climatic factors are recognised as particularly important because they significantly alter each vector’s potential to transmit the virus by directly causing changes in physical and behavioural traits.

In light of recognised ongoing climate change global trends, it has become increasingly relevant to understand how climate shapes the evolution and host–pathogen dynamics of arboviruses. This Special Issue aims to collate recent work focused on arboviruses in the context of climatic factors. All work exploring the role of past, present and future climate, whether of animal or human arboviruses, empirical or theoretical, is welcome. Original research articles and reviews are welcome.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. José Lourenço
Dr. Marta Giovanetti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • arbovirus
  • climate
  • climate change
  • arthropods
  • vectors
  • epidemiology
  • evolution
  • ecology
  • public health

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 4579 KiB  
Article
Larval Competition between Aedes and Culex Mosquitoes Carries over to Higher Arboviral Infection during Their Adult Stage
by Adwine Vanslembrouck, Stephanie Jansen, Jacobus De Witte, Corneel Janssens, Stien Vereecken, Michelle Helms, Unchana Lange, Renke Lühken, Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, Anna Heitmann and Ruth Müller
Viruses 2024, 16(8), 1202; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16081202 - 26 Jul 2024
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Abstract
The common house mosquito (Culex pipiens) is a native vector for West Nile virus (WNV). Invasive species like the tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) and Asian bush mosquito (Aedes japonicus) are rapidly spreading through Europe, posing a major [...] Read more.
The common house mosquito (Culex pipiens) is a native vector for West Nile virus (WNV). Invasive species like the tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) and Asian bush mosquito (Aedes japonicus) are rapidly spreading through Europe, posing a major threat as vectors for dengue, chikungunya (CHIKV), and Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). These mosquitoes share a similar ecological niche as larvae, but the carry-over effects of aquatic larval interactions to the terrestrial adult stage remain largely unknown and their medical relevance requires further investigation. This study examines the context dependency of larval interactions among Aedes albopictus, Aedes japonicus, and Culex pipiens. The survival, development time, growth, and energetic storage were measured in different European populations within density-response (intraspecific) experiments and replacement (interspecific) experiments at 20 °C and 26 °C. Overall, Ae. japonicus was the weakest competitor, while competition between Ae. albopictus and Cx. pipiens varied with temperature. Adults emerging from this larval competition were infected as follows: Culex pipiens with WNV, Ae. albopictus with CHIKV, and Ae. japonicus with JEV. While no JEV infection was observed, mosquitoes experiencing interspecific interactions during their larval stages exhibited higher infection rates and viral RNA titers for CHIKV and WNV. This increased susceptibility to viral infection after larval competition suggests a higher risk of arbovirus transmission in co-occurring populations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Arboviruses and Climate)
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15 pages, 3490 KiB  
Article
Exploring Dengue Dynamics: A Multi-Scale Analysis of Spatio-Temporal Trends in Ibagué, Colombia
by Julian Otero, Alejandra Tabares and Mauricio Santos-Vega
Viruses 2024, 16(6), 906; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16060906 - 3 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1093
Abstract
Our study examines how dengue fever incidence is associated with spatial (demographic and socioeconomic) alongside temporal (environmental) factors at multiple scales in the city of Ibagué, located in the Andean region of Colombia. We used the dengue incidence in Ibagué from 2013 to [...] Read more.
Our study examines how dengue fever incidence is associated with spatial (demographic and socioeconomic) alongside temporal (environmental) factors at multiple scales in the city of Ibagué, located in the Andean region of Colombia. We used the dengue incidence in Ibagué from 2013 to 2018 to examine the associations with climate, socioeconomic, and demographic factors from the national census and satellite imagery at four levels of local spatial aggregation. We used geographically weighted regression (GWR) to identify the relevant socioeconomic and demographic predictors, and we then integrated them with environmental variables into hierarchical models using integrated nested Laplace approximation (INLA) to analyze the spatio-temporal interactions. Our findings show a significant effect of spatial variables across the different levels of aggregation, including human population density, gas and sewage connection, percentage of woman and children, and percentage of population with a higher education degree. Lagged temporal variables displayed consistent patterns across all levels of spatial aggregation, with higher temperatures and lower precipitation at short lags showing an increase in the relative risk (RR). A comparative evaluation of the models at different levels of aggregation revealed that, while higher aggregation levels often yield a better overall model fit, finer levels offer more detailed insights into the localized impacts of socioeconomic and demographic variables on dengue incidence. Our results underscore the importance of considering macro and micro-level factors in epidemiological modeling, and they highlight the potential for targeted public health interventions based on localized risk factor analyses. Notably, the intermediate levels emerged as the most informative, thereby balancing spatial heterogeneity and case distribution density, as well as providing a robust framework for understanding the spatial determinants of dengue. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Arboviruses and Climate)
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8 pages, 577 KiB  
Brief Report
Abrupt Increase in Detection of Locally Acquired West-Nile-Virus-Lineage-2-Mediated Neuroinvasive Disease in a Previously Non-Endemic Area of Southern Italy (2023)
by Daniela Loconsole, Francesca Centrone, Anna Sallustio, Daniele Casulli, Vito Colella, Onofrio Mongelli, Giulietta Venturi, Antonino Bella, Leonardo Marino, Domenico Martinelli and Maria Chironna
Viruses 2024, 16(1), 53; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16010053 - 28 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1398
Abstract
West Nile virus (WNV) is a public health concern in Europe. Rising temperatures and the migration of potential vectors promote the spread of viruses to previously unaffected areas. In 2023, the Apulia region of Southern Italy experienced an unexpected increase in West Nile [...] Read more.
West Nile virus (WNV) is a public health concern in Europe. Rising temperatures and the migration of potential vectors promote the spread of viruses to previously unaffected areas. In 2023, the Apulia region of Southern Italy experienced an unexpected increase in West Nile neuroinvasive disease (WNND); no such cases had been reported in the previous 10 years. Overall, eight autochthonous cases of WNV infection were identified between July and October 2023, six of which were WNND. All cases were male (median age, 73 years). Two of the cases were blood donors. All WNND cases were hospitalized and all recovered within a few weeks. Surveillance data showed that, in the Apulia region, WNV Lineage 2 was detected in humans, mosquitoes, and horses. Based on the number of WNND cases reported, we can assume that a high number of infections occurred during the summer period. Changes in the climate in the region over recent years could be considered among the main drivers of the rapid increase in WNV infections. Therefore, integrated surveillance should be strengthened to avoid the potential massive spread of WNV in Southern Italy. Moreover, the implementation of whole-genome sequencing of WNV strains, as well as seroepidemiological studies in the area, will facilitate a better understanding of circulation dynamics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Arboviruses and Climate)
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