Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture, Kigali, Rwanda.
Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803, USA.
J Gen Virol. 2024 Nov;105(11). doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.002040.
Bunyamwera virus (BUNV) is the prototypical member of the Bunyamwera serogroup within the genus. BUNV is transmitted by mosquito vectors of the genera , and and has historically circulated in East Africa, though the transmission has been observed in Argentina. BUNV has been identified as an agent of human and animal disease and has also been misdiagnosed as other agents. BUNV is often thought to be an agent of mild febrile illness in humans, though it can cause abortions in ruminants and neurological disease in horses. Joint pain and gastritis have also been attributed to BUNV. There are limited data concerning the possible spectrum of disease and extent of pathogenesis of BUNV infection, and there are currently no therapeutics or vaccines available. Furthermore, options for animal models for Orthobunyaviruses in general - of which BUNV is the prototypical member - are limited. Eight mice deficient in the type I interferon response were infected with BUNV, and all developed overt disease. All mice developed detectable viraemia and clinical signs, including weight loss, hunched posture and lethargy. Three of the eight mice developed severe diseases, including vascular necrosis and necrosis in the liver, lungs, reproductive organs, bone marrow and spleen, as well as haemorrhages (=1) and severe diffuse facial oedema (=3), reminiscent of the pathology of Schmallenberg and the Arenaviruses Lassa and Lujo viruses. Thus, BUNV infection of IRF3/7 DKO mice could serve as a BSL-2 model for severe diseases of higher-risk group viruses, which often must be studied at BSL-4. Additionally, our results suggest that BUNV may have the ability to cause severe disease in immunocompromised hosts. Thus, further investigation into the potential spectrum of pathogenesis due to BUNV is important to prioritize for outbreak response, diagnostics and the development of countermeasures.
布尼亚姆韦拉病毒（BUNV）是 属内布尼亚姆韦拉血清群的原型成员。BUNV 通过 和 属的蚊子媒介传播，历史上在东非传播，但在阿根廷也观察到了传播。BUNV 已被确定为人类和动物疾病的病原体，并且也被误诊为其他病原体。BUNV 通常被认为是人类轻度发热疾病的病原体，尽管它可导致反刍动物流产和马的神经疾病。关节疼痛和胃炎也归因于 BUNV。关于 BUNV 感染的可能疾病谱和发病机制程度的数据有限，目前尚无可用的治疗方法或疫苗。此外，一般情况下正布尼亚病毒（BUNV 是其原型成员）的动物模型选择有限。八只缺乏 I 型干扰素反应的小鼠感染了 BUNV，所有小鼠均出现明显疾病。所有小鼠均出现可检测的病毒血症和临床症状，包括体重减轻、缩颈姿势和嗜睡。八只小鼠中有三只出现严重疾病，包括血管坏死和肝脏、肺部、生殖器官、骨髓和脾脏坏死，以及出血（=1）和严重弥漫性面部水肿（=3），类似于 Schmallenberg 病毒和沙粒病毒属的 Lassa 和 Lujo 病毒的病理学。因此，IRF3/7 DKO 小鼠感染 BUNV 可作为 BSL-2 模型，用于研究高风险组病毒的严重疾病，这些病毒通常必须在 BSL-4 下进行研究。此外，我们的结果表明，BUNV 可能有能力在免疫功能低下的宿主中引起严重疾病。因此，进一步研究 BUNV 引起的潜在发病机制谱对于暴发应对、诊断和对策的开发非常重要。
