Culex mosquitoes are experimentally unable to transmit Zika virus.

Fadila Amraoui (1) , Célestine Atyame Nten (1) , Anubis Vega-Rúa (2) , Ricardo Lourenço-De-Oliveira (3) , Marie Vazeille (1) , Anna-Bella Failloux (1)

1 Arbovirus et Insectes Vecteurs - Arboviruses and Insect Vectors
2 Institut Pasteur de la Guadeloupe
3 FIOCRUZ - Fundação Oswaldo Cruz

We report that two laboratory colonies of Culex quinquefasciatus and Culex pipiens mosquitoes were experimentally unable to transmit ZIKV either up to 21 days post an infectious blood meal or up to 14 days post intrathoracic inoculation. Infectious viral particles were detected in bodies, heads or saliva by a plaque forming unit assay on Vero cells. We therefore consider it unlikely that Culex mosquitoes are involved in the rapid spread of ZIKV.

Keywords: Culex mosquitoes; vector competence; zika

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]; Microbiology and Parasitology; Virology

Fadila Amraoui, Célestine Atyame Nten, Anubis Vega-Rúa, Ricardo Lourenço-De-Oliveira, Marie Vazeille, et al.. Culex mosquitoes are experimentally unable to transmit Zika virus.. Eurosurveillance, 2016, 21 (35), ⟨10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2016.21.35.30333⟩. ⟨pasteur-01473720⟩