Sieg Michael, Schmidt Volker, Ziegler Ute, Keller Markus, Höper Dirk, Heenemann Kristin, Rückner Antje, Nieper Hermann, Muluneh Aemero, Groschup Martin H, Vahlenkamp Thomas W
1 Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Virology, University of Leipzig , Leipzig, Germany .
2 Foerderverein zur Erforschung von Infektionskrankheiten bei Haus- und Nutztieren (FEIHN) e.V. , Zeitz, Germany .
Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2017 Sep;17(9):662-664. doi: 10.1089/vbz.2016.2096. Epub 2017 Aug 17.
Usutu virus (USUV) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus accounting for large-scale deaths in resident bird populations. In this study, we show the introduction of USUV to Eastern Germany resulting in massive death of birds, particularly blackbirds (Turdus merula). We found that three diverse USUV lineages ("Europe 3," "Africa 2," and "Africa 3-like") circulated simultaneously. Moreover, we detected USUV in Culex pipiens in a region where no dead birds were reported, strengthening the need for mosquito monitoring to uncover the spread of arboviruses. Furthermore, phylogenetic analyses revealed that mutations accumulated, in particular, in the NS3 region within short time periods. In addition, comparison of whole-genome sequences showed that diverse isolates of the cluster "Africa 3-like" are cocirculating in Germany due to independent introduction events.
乌苏图病毒（USUV）是一种由蚊子传播的黄病毒，可导致当地鸟类种群大规模死亡。在本研究中，我们展示了乌苏图病毒传入德国东部，导致鸟类大量死亡，尤其是乌鸫（欧亚鸲）。我们发现三种不同的乌苏图病毒谱系（“欧洲3型”、“非洲2型”和“类非洲3型”）同时传播。此外，我们在一个未报告有死鸟的地区的尖音库蚊中检测到了乌苏图病毒，这进一步表明需要对蚊子进行监测以发现虫媒病毒的传播。此外，系统发育分析表明，特别是在短时间内，NS3区域积累了突变。此外，全基因组序列比较显示，由于独立的引入事件，“类非洲3型”簇的不同分离株正在德国共同传播。
