Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
J. Erin Staples, Katherine B. Gibney, Amanda J. Panella, Harry E. Prince, Alison J. Basile, Janeen Laven, James J. Sejvar, Marc Fischer
Summary: West Nile virus (WNV) IgM antibodies can remain detectable for several months to years following infection. The proportion of samples testing positive for WNV IgM decreases over time, but some individuals remain positive or equivocal for IgM antibodies even years after their acute illness. The WNV microsphere immunoassay (MIA) method consistently shows higher rates of positivity compared to the ELISA, but also has a high proportion of nonspecific results at each time point.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND HYGIENE
(2022)
Article
Veterinary Sciences
Ji-Yeon Hyeon, Zeinab H. Helal, Allison Appel, Natalie Tocco, Amelia Hunt, Dong-Hun Lee, Guillermo R. Risatti
Summary: This study discovered West Nile virus (WNV) in an American crow from Connecticut and an alpaca from Massachusetts. The sequencing of the WNVs and their phylogenetic analysis revealed that they belong to lineage 1 and suggest that vector-host feeding preferences may drive viral transmission. The obtained sequences and phylogenetic relationships will serve as valuable reference data for future investigations on WNVs.
FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Hematology
Rossana C. Garzon Jimenez, Ryanne W. Lieshout-Krikke, Mart P. Janssen
Summary: This study assessed the risk of arboviral transmission through blood supplies in Europe, finding that the risk of local transmission is on average 113 times higher than that of transmission by travelling donors. Strict compliance with European regulations, such as deferring or testing donors who visit arboviral-infected areas, is necessary to reduce the risk of infection.
Review
Immunology
Anum Abbas, Fang Qiu, Adia Sikyta, Paul D. Fey, Diana F. Florescu
Summary: Through a retrospective review of medical records and literature search, we found that WNv infections in solid organ transplant recipients can be acquired through organ donation or from the community, and these infections can lead to severe neuroinvasive disease.
TRANSPLANT INFECTIOUS DISEASE
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Srijani Sarkar, Bruce A. Armitage
Summary: This study designed gamma-modified peptide nucleic acid (gamma PNA) oligomers to target a newly identified guanine-rich gene sequence in the WNV genome, showing potential for inhibiting WNV replication and transcription. The gamma PNAs demonstrated strong binding to the target with low femtomolar affinity at physiological temperature, indicating a promising antiviral strategy.
ACS INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Hematology
Philip Kiely, Clive R. Seed, Manoj Gambhir, Allen C. Cheng, Zoe K. McQuilten, Erica M. Wood
Summary: This study used a probabilistic risk model to estimate the monthly risk of West Nile virus transfusion transmission between Australia and the US in 2018. The results suggest that the risk is extremely small and may not warrant donation restrictions for donors returning from the US.
Article
Hematology
Christina Frank, Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, Ute Ziegler, Raskit Lachmann, Karina Preussel, Ruth Offergeld
Summary: West Nile virus has been circulating in Europe for over 20 years, but Germany was considered non-endemic until 2018. However, with ideal conditions for viral replication in mosquitoes, Germany experienced its first cases of West Nile virus among birds and horses in 2018. Since then, mosquito-borne infections have been reported in humans in affected areas of Central-East Germany.
TRANSFUSION MEDICINE AND HEMOTHERAPY
(2022)
Article
Virology
Jamal Sarvari, Seyed Y. Hosseini, Faezeh Mosayebi, Masoud T. Ardekani, Negar Joharinia, Nasir Arefinia, Sanam Azad-Manjiri, Mehdi Fazlalipour, Mohammad H. Pouriayevali, Mostafa Salehi-Vaziri
Summary: Climate change, increased travel, and large-scale trade have contributed to the global spread of mosquitoes and mosquito-borne infections, such as WNV. The study evaluated the frequency of WNV infection among blood donors in Fars province, Iran, with 22% of donors having been exposed to WNV. Results showed an association between WNV positivity and age, education level, occupation, and city of residence among participants.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Matthias Karrasch, Ulrich Pein, Annekathrin Fritz, Danica Lange, Stefan Moritz, Kerstin Amann, Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, Daniel Cadar, Dennis Tappe, Martin Gabriel
Summary: West Nile Virus (WNV) is a widespread flavivirus transmitted primarily by mosquitoes to birds, but can also infect mammals, including humans. The virus can cause a range of diseases, from asymptomatic infections to encephalitis. This case report highlights the importance of considering rare causes of illness, such as WNV, especially in high-risk groups. WNV can be detected early in the infection process using PCR in blood and cerebrospinal fluid, and may continue to be present in urine for an extended period.
DEUTSCHE MEDIZINISCHE WOCHENSCHRIFT
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Bojana Tesovic, Jakov Nisavic, Bojana Banovic Deri, Tamas Petrovic, Andrea Radalj, Milanko Sekler, Kazimir Matovic, Zoran Debeljak, Nikola Vaskovic, Marko Dmitric, Dejan Vidanovic
Summary: This study developed a multiplex PCR based NGS protocol for whole genome sequencing of WNV lineage 2 directly from biological samples using the Oxford Nanopore platform. The results indicate that this protocol can be applied to obtain complete sequences of the WNV genome.
DIAGNOSTIC MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE
(2023)
Article
Ophthalmology
Kareem Moussa, Karen W. Jeng-Miller, Leo A. Kim, Dean Eliott
Summary: The study evaluated the utility of NAAT and serology in confirming WNV infection in patients with suspected chorioretinitis. It found 3 cases where serology was crucial for diagnosing WNV infection.
JOURNAL OF VITREORETINAL DISEASES
(2021)
