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Dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV) belong to the same viral family, the Flaviviridae. They cause recurring threats to the public health systems of tropical countries such as Brazil. The primary Brazilian vector of both viruses is the mosquito Aedes aegypti. After the mosquito ingests a blood meal from an infected person, the viruses infect and replicate in the midgut, disseminate to secondary tissues and reach the salivary gland (SG), where they are ready to be transmitted to a vertebrate host. It is thought that the intrinsic discrepancies among mosquitoes could affect their ability to deal with viral infections. This study confirms that the DENV and ZIKV infection patterns of nine Ae. aegypti field populations found in geographically separate health districts of an endemic Brazilian city vary. We analyzed the infection rate, disseminated infection, vector competence, and viral load through quantitative PCR. Mosquitoes were challenged using the membrane-feeding assay technique and were tested seven and fourteen days post-infection (early and late infection phases, respectively). The infection responses varied among the Ae. aegypti populations for both flaviviruses in the two infection phases. There was no similarity between DENV and ZIKV vector competencies or viral loads. According to the results of our study, the risk of viral transmission overtime after infection either increases or remains unaltered in ZIKV infected vectors. However, the risk may increase, decrease, or remain unaltered in DENV-infected vectors depending on the mosquito population. For both flaviviruses, the viral load persisted in the body even until the late infection phase. In contrast to DENV, the ZIKV accumulated in the SG over time in all the mosquito populations. These findings are novel and may help direct the development of control strategies to fight dengue and Zika outbreaks in endemic regions, and provide a warning about the importance of understanding mosquito responses to arboviral infections. Author summary: Dengue and Zika are neglected diseases caused by viruses transmitted to humans by mosquitoes (vector-borne diseases). The primary vector of both diseases is Aedes aegypti, a highly abundant mosquito in tropical countries and adapted to the urban habitat. The viral cycle in the vector starts when the mosquito bites an infected person and acquires the viruses through the blood meal. When the infected blood reaches the mosquito's midgut, the viruses invade the epithelial cells and disseminate in several organs until they reach the salivary glands, enabling viral transmission to the next person. However, the mosquitoes have developed strategies to combat the viral invasion and dissemination in their body, making this journey a challenge to the viruses. Herein, we show that the mosquito responses against dengue and Zika viruses are distinct. In addition, mosquitoes from separate populations of the same city have different abilities to deal with the viruses in both cases, dengue and Zika infections. Our results show the diversity of responses that the mosquitoes may present to viral infections. These findings may better direct disease control strategies to combat dengue and Zika outbreaks in endemic regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamics of dengue virus (DENV) circulation depends on serotype, genotype and lineage replacement and turnover. In São José do Rio Preto, Brazil, we observed that the L6 lineage of DENV-1 (genotype V) remained the dominant circulating lineage even after the introduction of the L1 lineage. We investigated viral fitness and immunogenicity of the L1 and L6 lineages and which factors interfered with the dynamics of DENV epidemics. The results showed a more efficient replicative fitness of L1 over L6 in mosquitoes and in human and non-human primate cell lines. Infections by the L6 lineage were associated with reduced antigenicity, weak B and T cell stimulation and weak host immune system interactions, which were associated with higher viremia. Our data, therefore, demonstrate that reduced viral immunogenicity and consequent greater viremia determined the increased epidemiological fitness of DENV-1 L6 lineage in São José do Rio Preto. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The successful spread and maintenance of the dengue virus (DENV) in mosquito vectors depends on their viral infection susceptibility, and parameters related to vector competence are the most valuable for measuring the risk of viral transmission by mosquitoes. These parameters may vary according to the viral serotype in circulation and in accordance with the geographic origin of the mosquito population that is being assessed. In this study, we investigated the effect of DENV serotypes (1–4) with regards to the infection susceptibility of five Brazilian Ae. aegypti populations from Manaus, the capital of the state of Amazonas, Brazil. Mosquitoes were challenged by oral infection with the DENV serotypes and then tested for the presence of the arbovirus using quantitative PCR at 14 days post-infection, which is the time point that corresponds to the extrinsic incubation period of Ae. aegypti when reared at 28 °C. Thus, we were able to determine the infection patterns for DENV-1, -2, -3 and -4 in the mosquito populations. The mosquitoes had both interpopulation and inter-serotype variation in their viral susceptibilities. All DENV serotypes showed a similar tendency to accumulate in the body in a greater amount than in the head/salivary gland (head/SG), which does not occur with other flaviviruses. For DENV-1, DENV-3, and DENV-4, the body viral load varied among populations, but the head/SG viral loads were similar. Differently for DENV-2, both body and head/SG viral loads varied among populations. As the lack of phenotypic homogeneity represents one of the most important reasons for the long-term fight against dengue incidence, we expect that this study will help us to understand the dynamics of the infection patterns that are triggered by the distinct serotypes of DENV in mosquitoes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Aedes aegypti larvae can be simultaneously infected by two arboviruses. • A vertical cotransmission of arboviruses to Ae. aegypti larvae may occur. • Ae. aegypti infestation indexes seem to be able to predict arboviral circulation. The outbreaks caused by the Aedes aegypti -transmitted dengue virus (DENV), zakat virus (ZIKV), and chikungunya virus (CHIKV) result in a significant impact to the health systems of tropical countries. Furthermore, the occurrence of patients coinfected by at least two of these arboviruses is an aggravating factor in that scenario. On this basis, surveillance tools such as the Rapid Index Survey for Aedes aegypti (LIRAa) are used to estimate vector infestation in order to improve the prediction of human outbreaks. Ae. aegypti eggs were collected in the city of Vitória da Conquista, in Bahia State, Brazil, and subsequently hatched into larvae, which were analyzed in pools or individually for the presence of DENV, ZIKV, and CHIKV by molecular biology methods. The detection data for arboviruses were crossed with the LIRAa obtained in each region of the study city. Thirty larvae pools were analyzed, and fourteen (46.6%) of them were detected positive for DENV, ZIKV, and/or CHIKV. Among the individually analyzed larvae (n = 30), nine (30%) were positive for any of these arboviruses, and four (13.3%) were simultaneously coinfected by DENV and ZIKV. Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between the detection of circulating arboviruses and LIRAa. The simultaneous Ae. aegypti larvae infection by two different arboviruses is an unprecedented finding. This result suggests the occurrence of a vertical arboviruses co-transmission from the female mosquito to its offspring in nature. The occurrence of concomitant circulation of DENV, ZIKV, and CHIKV in Ae. aegypti from a single study region is another finding of this article. Finally, LIRAa seems to not only estimate vector infestation but also to predict circulation of arboviruses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]