TY - JOUR
T1 - Emergence of Usutu virus, an African mosquito-borne Flavivirus of the Japanese encephalitis virus group, central Europe
AU - Weissenböck, Herbert
AU - Kolodziejek, Jolanta
AU - Url, Angelika
AU - Lussy, Helga
AU - Rebel-Bauder, Barbara
AU - Nowotny, Norbert
PY - 2002
Y1 - 2002
N2 - During late summer 2001 in Austria, a series of deaths in several species of birds occurred, similar to the beginning of the West Nile virus (WNV) epidemic in the United States. We necropsied the dead birds and examined them by various methods; pathologic and immunohistologic investigations suggested a WNV infection. Subsequently, the virus was isolated, identified, partially sequenced, and subjected to phylogenetic analysis. The isolates exhibited 97% identity to Usutu virus (USUV), a mosquito-borne Flavivirus of the Japanese encephalitis virus group; USUV has never previously been observed outside Africa nor associated with fatal disease in animals or humans. If established in central Europe, this virus may have considerable effects on avian populations; whether USUV has the potential to cause severe human disease is unknown.
AB - During late summer 2001 in Austria, a series of deaths in several species of birds occurred, similar to the beginning of the West Nile virus (WNV) epidemic in the United States. We necropsied the dead birds and examined them by various methods; pathologic and immunohistologic investigations suggested a WNV infection. Subsequently, the virus was isolated, identified, partially sequenced, and subjected to phylogenetic analysis. The isolates exhibited 97% identity to Usutu virus (USUV), a mosquito-borne Flavivirus of the Japanese encephalitis virus group; USUV has never previously been observed outside Africa nor associated with fatal disease in animals or humans. If established in central Europe, this virus may have considerable effects on avian populations; whether USUV has the potential to cause severe human disease is unknown.
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U2 - 10.3201/eid0807.020094
DO - 10.3201/eid0807.020094
M3 - Article
C2 - 12095429
AN - SCOPUS:0036314909
SN - 1080-6040
VL - 8
SP - 652
EP - 656
JO - Emerging Infectious Diseases
JF - Emerging Infectious Diseases
IS - 7
ER -