Dataset Information

PCR identification of culicoid biting midges (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) of the Obsoletus complex including putative vectors of bluetongue and Schmallenberg viruses.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Biting midges of the Obsoletus species complex of the ceratopogonid genus Culicoides were assumed to be the major vectors of bluetongue virus (BTV) in northern and central Europe during the 2006 outbreak of bluetongue disease (BT). Most recently, field specimens of the same group of species have also been shown to be infected with the newly emerged Schmallenberg virus (SBV) in Europe. A reliable identification of the cryptic species of this group is fundamental for both understanding the epidemiology of the diseases and for targeted vector control. In the absence of classical morphological characters unambiguously identifying the species, DNA sequence-based tests have been established for the distinction of selected species in some parts of Europe. Since specificity and sensitivity of these tests have been shown to be in need of improvement, an alternative PCR assay targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was developed for the identification of the three Obsoletus complex species endemic to Germany (C. obsoletus, C. scoticus, C. chiopterus) plus the isomorphic species C. dewulfi. METHODS: Biting midges of the genus Culicoides caught by UV light traps all over Germany were morphologically pre-identified to species or complex level. The COI region was amplified from their extracted DNA and sequenced. Final species assignment was done by sequence comparison to GenBank entries and to morphologically identified males. Species-specific consensus sequences were aligned and polymorphisms were utilized to design species-specific primers to PCR-identify specimens when combined with a universal primer. RESULTS: The newly developed multiplex PCR assay was successfully tested on genetically defined Obsoletus complex material as well as on morphologically pre-identified field material. The intended major advantage of the assay as compared to other PCR approaches, namely the production of only one single characteristic band for each species, could be realized with high specificity and sensitivity. CONCLUSION: To elucidate the biological characteristics of potential vectors of disease agents, such as ecology, behaviour and vector competence, and the role of these haematophagous arthropods in the epidemiology of the diseases, simple, cost-effective and, most importantly, reliable identification techniques are necessary. The PCR assay presented will help to identify culicoid vector species and therefore add to bluetongue and Schmallenberg disease research including vector control and monitoring.

SUBMITTER: Lehmann K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3508804 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

PCR identification of culicoid biting midges (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) of the Obsoletus complex including putative vectors of bluetongue and Schmallenberg viruses.

Lehmann Kathrin K Werner Doreen D Hoffmann Bernd B Kampen Helge H

Parasites & vectors 20120926

<h4>Background</h4>Biting midges of the Obsoletus species complex of the ceratopogonid genus Culicoides were assumed to be the major vectors of bluetongue virus (BTV) in northern and central Europe during the 2006 outbreak of bluetongue disease (BT). Most recently, field specimens of the same group of species have also been shown to be infected with the newly emerged Schmallenberg virus (SBV) in Europe. A reliable identification of the cryptic species of this group is fundamental for both unders ...[more]

PMID: 23013614

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundIn Senegal, the last epidemic of African horse sickness (AHS) occurred in 2007. The western part of the country (the Niayes area) concentrates modern farms with exotic horses of high value and was highly affected during the 2007 outbreak that has started in the area. Several studies were initiated in the Niayes area in order to better characterize Culicoides diversity, ecology and the impact of environmental and climatic data on dynamics of proven and suspected vectors. The aims of this study are to better understand the spatial distribution and diversity of Culicoides in Senegal and to map their abundance throughout the country.MethodsCulicoides data were obtained through a nationwide trapping campaign organized in 2012. Two successive collection nights were carried out in 96 sites in 12 (of 14) regions of Senegal at the end of the rainy season (between September and October) using OVI (Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute) light traps. Three different modeling approaches were compared: the first consists in a spatial interpolation by ordinary kriging of Culicoides abundance data. The two others consist in analyzing the relation between Culicoides abundance and environmental and climatic data to model abundance and investigate the environmental suitability; and were carried out by implementing generalized linear models and random forest models.ResultsA total of 1,373,929 specimens of the genus Culicoides belonging to at least 32 different species were collected in 96 sites during the survey. According to the RF (random forest) models which provided better estimates of abundances than Generalized Linear Models (GLM) models, environmental and climatic variables that influence species abundance were identified. Culicoides imicola, C. enderleini and C. miombo were mostly driven by average rainfall and minimum and maximum normalized difference vegetation index. Abundance of C. oxystoma was mostly determined by average rainfall and day temperature. Culicoides bolitinos had a particular trend; the environmental and climatic variables above had a lesser impact on its abundance. RF model prediction maps for the first four species showed high abundance in southern Senegal and in the groundnut basin area, whereas C. bolitinos was present in southern Senegal, but in much lower abundance.ConclusionsEnvironmental and climatic variables of importance that influence the spatial distribution of species abundance were identified. It is now crucial to evaluate the vector competence of major species and then combine the vector densities with densities of horses to quantify the risk of transmission of AHS virus across the country.

Project description:Leishmania parasites, causative agents of leishmaniasis, are currently divided into four subgenera: Leishmania, Viannia, Sauroleishmania and Mundinia. The recently established subgenus Mundinia has a wide geographical distribution and contains five species, three of which have the potential to infect and cause disease in humans. While the other Leishmania subgenera are transmitted exclusively by phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae), natural vectors of Mundinia remain uncertain. This study investigates the potential of sand flies and biting midges of the genus Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) to transmit Leishmania parasites of the subgenus Mundinia. Sand flies (Phlebotomus argentipes, P. duboscqi and Lutzomyia migonei) and Culicoides biting midges (Culicoides sonorensis) were exposed to five Mundinia species through a chicken skin membrane and dissected at specific time intervals post bloodmeal. Potentially infected insects were also allowed to feed on ear pinnae of anaesthetized BALB/c mice and the presence of Leishmania DNA was subsequently confirmed in the mice using polymerase chain reaction analyses. In C. sonorensis, all Mundinia species tested were able to establish infection at a high rate, successfully colonize the stomodeal valve and produce a higher proportion of metacyclic forms than in sand flies. Subsequently, three parasite species, L. martiniquensis, L. orientalis and L. sp. from Ghana, were transmitted to the host mouse ear by C. sonorensis bite. In contrast, transmission experiments entirely failed with P. argentipes, although colonisation of the stomodeal valve was observed for L. orientalis and L. martiniquensis and metacyclic forms of L. orientalis were recorded. This laboratory-based transmission of Mundinia species highlights that Culicoides are potential vectors of members of this ancestral subgenus of Leishmania and we suggest further studies in endemic areas to confirm their role in the lifecycles of neglected pathogens.

Project description:BackgroundInvestigations of Culicoides fauna, including inventories, were carried out in Morocco at different periods after the country had faced major bluetongue and African horse sickness outbreaks. However, no comprehensive reference publication has provided a clear overview of the Culicoides species diversity. This study reviewed available data on Culicoides biting midge species in Morocco from 1968 to 2015 (published and grey literature in French and English) in order to revise the current checklist, in light of state of the art taxonomic and systematic knowledge, and confirmed the checklist with morphological and molecular identifications of specimens collected from the region of Rabat.MethodsLiterature related to Culicoides collections in Morocco was collated. Authors were contacted to obtain raw data and additional information for the collections. Fresh Culicoides material was collected and examined from two sites around Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Each collected individual was examined and morphologically identified, if possible, to the species level. In addition, molecular identification was performed to separate closely related species, to confirm difficult morphological identifications and to confirm new species records.ResultsA total of 6121 individuals of Culicoides spp. were collected and analyzed and at least 17 species were identified: C. cataneii/C. gejgelensis, C. circumscriptus, C. fagineus, C. festivipennis, C. imicola, C. jumineri, C. kingi, C. longipennis, C. montanus, C. newsteadi, C. obsoletus, C. paolae, C. parotti, C. puncticollis, C. sahariensis, C. scoticus and C. subfagineus. Seven species were confirmed using phylogenetic analyses. Two new species records for Morocco are reported: C. paolae and C. subfagineus.ConclusionsThe Moroccan fauna of Culicoides now includes 54 valid species. Further work would certainly increase this total, as one of the clades we identified was not affiliated to any described and valid species.

Project description:IntroductionCulicoides biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) are vectors of arboviral pathogens that primarily affect livestock represented by Schmallenberg virus (SBV), epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) and bluetongue virus (BTV). In Kenya, studies examining the bionomic features of Culicoides including species diversity, blood-feeding habits, and association with viruses are limited.MethodsAdult Culicoides were surveyed using CDC light traps in two semi-arid ecologies, Baringo and Kajiado counties, in Kenya. Blood-fed specimens were analysed through polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) barcoding region. Culicoides pools were screened for virus infection by generic RT-PCR and next-generation sequencing (NGS).ResultsAnalysis of blood-fed specimens confirmed that midges had fed on cattle, goats, sheep, zebra, and birds. Cox1 barcoding of the sampled specimens revealed the presence of known vectors of BTV and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) including species in the Imicola group (Culicoides imicola) and Schultzei group (C. enderleni, C. kingi, and C. chultzei). Culicoides leucostictus and a cryptic species distantly related to the Imicola group were also identified. Screening of generated pools (11,006 individuals assigned to 333 pools) by generic RT-PCR revealed presence of seven phylogenetically distinct viruses grouping in the genera Goukovirus, Pacuvirus and Orthobunyavirus. The viruses showed an overall minimum infection rate (MIR) of 7.0% (66/333, 95% confidence interval (CI) 5.5-8.9). In addition, full coding sequences of two new iflaviruses, tentatively named Oloisinyai_1 and Oloisinyai_2, were generated by next-generation sequencing (NGS) from individual homogenate of Culicoides pool.ConclusionThe results indicate a high genetic diversity of viruses in Kenyan biting midges. Further insights into host-vector-virus interactions as well as investigations on the potential clinical significance of the detected viruses are warranted.

Dataset Information

PCR identification of culicoid biting midges (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) of the Obsoletus complex including putative vectors of bluetongue and Schmallenberg viruses.

Publications

PCR identification of culicoid biting midges (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) of the Obsoletus complex including putative vectors of bluetongue and Schmallenberg viruses.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets