Volume 32, June 2015, Pages 292–297
Further circulation of West Nile and Usutu viruses in wild birds in Italy
Highlights
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- WNV and USUV circulation has been demonstrated in wild birds in Northwest Italy.
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- WNV antibodies were more prevalent (p < 0.001) in trans-Saharan migrants birds.
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- Antibody titers were slightly higher to WNV than USUV.
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- Ringing and rehabilitation organizations had a critical role during this study.
Abstract
Usutu
virus (USUV) and West Nile virus (WNV) are emerging pathogens that can
cause neurological disease in humans. From March 2012 to June 2013, a
sero-survey on wild birds was carried out to investigate the circulation
of both viruses in Northwest (NW) Italy. Samples belonging to 47
different bird species have been collected using a volunteer based
network and a wildlife rehabilitation center. Four of 297 serum samples
had neutralizing antibodies against USUV (P = 1.34%, IC 95% 0.36–3.4), while 10 of 233 samples tested positive for WNV (P = 4.29%, IC 95% 2.07–7.75). Neutralizing antibodies for WNV were significantly more prevalent (p < 0.001) in trans-Saharan migrants (P = 21%,
IC 95% 9.55–37.3) than in resident and short-distance birds, but no
migratory habit-related differences were found for USUV. Antibodies in
resident bird species suggest that both viruses are circulating in NW
Italy.
Keywords
- USUV;
- WNV;
- Migratory birds;
- Serology;
- Italy
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