Abstract

  West Nile fever (WNF) is a viral mosquito-transmitted disease caused by West Nile virus (WNV), a member of the Flaviviridae family. WNV infects an extremely wide range of susceptible hosts and is capable of replicating in mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians. The enzootic lifecycle of WNV consists of cycling between mosquitoes and birds and sporadic spillover results in disease in horses and humans. Rare and severe neuroinvasive disease in humans and horses occurs. The epidemic significance of WNV infection is illustrated by its worldwide distribution, variable clinical prognosis of disease, and lack of therapeutic options. In Ukraine, 14 enzootic territories have been identified. While climate conditions, water sources and a large number of avian migratory routes create optimal conditions for the pathogen circulation in the country, the epidemiological status of WNV in Ukraine is poorly defined. Annual introduction of WNV to Ukraine likely occurs via seasonal migratory bird routes that exist regionally between Ukraine and neighboring European countries. The genotype of historical avian Ukrainian isolate exhibits the Lineage 2 genotype, however, only limited WNV genome sequences from Ukraine are available. Enhanced viral surveillance and serologic diagnosis of WNF in Ukraine is warranted and remains an essential measure for a clear understanding of the current epidemic situation and the prediction of possible WNV outbreaks in the future.

Keywords: West Nile Virus; Ukraine; Transmission; Vectors; Birds; Enzootic Cycle; Migration

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Citation

Citation: Alla Yushchenko., et al. “Ecological and Epidemiological Aspects of West Nile Virus in Ukraine". Acta Scientific Microbiology 3.5 (2020): 31-36.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2020 Alla Yushchenko., et al.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.