High susceptibility of magpie (Pica pica) to experimental infection with lineage 1 and 2 West Nile virus.

ABSTRACT: West Nile virus (WNV), a zoonotic pathogen naturally transmitted by mosquitoes whose natural hosts are birds, has spread worldwide during the last few decades. Resident birds play an important role in flavivirus epidemiology, since they can serve as reservoirs and facilitate overwintering of the virus. Herein, we report the first experimental infection of magpie (Pica pica) with two strains of West Nile virus, lineages 1 (NY-99) and 2 (SRB Novi-Sad/12), which are currently circulating in Europe. Magpies were highly susceptible to WNV infection, with similar low survival rates (30% and 42.8%) for both lineages. All infected magpies developed viremia detectable at 3 days post-infection with titers above those necessary for successful transmission of WNV to a mosquito. Neutralizing antibodies

SUBMITTER: Jimenez de Oya N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5909923 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature