Isolation of Japanese encephalitis virus from Anopheles annularis and Anopheles vagus in Lombok, Indonesia.

Three strains of Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus were recorded from mosquitoes collected in Lombok, Indonesia, during March 1979, from pools of Anopheles vagus, An. annularis and Culex tritaeniorhynchus respectively. This is believed to be the first report of isolation of JE virus from An. vagus. The frequencies of JE viral infection in zoophilic Anopheles species were higher than in Cx tritaeniorhynchus, the principle vector of JE virus in Asia. The low frequency of infection in Cx tritaeniorhynchus and the relatively infrequent raising of pigs may account for the low prevalence of JE neutralizing antibodies in the human populations of Lombok.