Surveillance of Zika and Dengue viruses in field-collected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes from different states of India.

The emergence of Zika created a panic situation worldwide and burdened the public health system of the affected countries. In India, Zika outbreak occurred in 2017 and in July 2021 one laboratory-confirmed case was also reported in Kerala state. The study aimed to assess any positivity in field-collected mosquitoes for ZIKV and DENV during 2016-2021. Mosquito samples were received from 4 Zika affected citites, whereas samples were collected from Delhi. Out of 2346 pools, 4 pools for ZIKV, and 23 pools for DENV were found positive. ZIKV positive pools were from Shastri Nagar, Jaipur (2 pools), Rajpur Hotel, Jaipur (1 pool) and Kanpur (1 pool). Ten localities of Delhi were found positive for DENV. It was observed that the maximum positivity rate for both viruses were found in September-October. The active role of the vector in local transmission of ZIKV warrants regular surveillance and monitoring of Aedes vectors in India.