Vector competence of selected North American and mosquitoes for Zika virus.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a vector-borne flavivirus that has caused recent outbreaks associated with serious disease in infants and newborns in the Americas. mosquitoes are the primary vectors for ZIKV, but little is known about the diversity of mosquitoes that can transmit ZIKV in North America. We chose three abundant North American mosquito species (, , and ) and one known vector species (), fed them blood meals supplemented with a recent outbreak ZIKV strain, and tested bodies, legs, and saliva for infectious ZIKV. ZIKV was able to infect, disseminate, and be transmitted by . However, , , and were unable to be infected. We conclude that these species are unlikely to be involved in ZIKV transmission in North America. However, we should continue to examine the ability for other mosquito species to potentially act as ZIKV vectors in North America.