St. Louis Encephalitis Virus in the Southwestern United States: A Phylogeographic Case for a Multi-Variant Introduction Event
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: spp. populations throughout the Southwest United States. Previous work revealed the 2015 outbreak was caused by an importation of SLEV genotype III, which had only been detected previously in Argentina. However, little is known about when the importation occurred or the transmission and genetic dynamics since its arrival into the Southwest. In this study, we sought to determine whether the annual detection of SLEV in the Southwest is due to enzootic cycling or new importations. To address this question, we analyzed 174 SLEV genomes (142 sequenced as part of this study) using Bayesian phylogenetic analyses to estimate the date of arrival into the American Southwest and characterize the underlying population structure of SLEV. Phylogenetic clustering showed that SLEV variants circulating in Maricopa and Riverside counties form two distinct populations with little evidence of inter-county transmission since the onset of the outbreak. Alternatively, it appears that in 2019, Yuma and Clark counties experienced annual importations of SLEV that originated in Riverside and Maricopa counties. Finally, the earliest representatives of SLEV genotype III in the Southwest form a polytomy that includes both California and Arizona samples. We propose that the initial outbreak most likely resulted from the importation of a population of SLEV genotype III variants, perhaps in multiple birds, possibly multiple species, migrating north in 2013, rather than a single variant introduced by one bird.
Source: Frontiers in Genetics
Authors: Chase L. Ridenour, Jill Cocking, Samuel Poidmore, Daryn Erickson, Breezy Brock, Michael Valentine, Chandler C. Roe, Steven J. Young, Jennifer A. Henke, Kim Y. Hung, Jeremy Wittie, Elene Stefanakos, Chris Sumner, Martha Ruedas, Vivek Raman, Nicole Seaton, William Bendik, Heidie M. Hornstra O’Neill, Krystal Sheridan, Heather Centner, Darrin Lemmer, Viacheslav Fofanov, Kirk Smith, James Will, John Townsend, Jeffrey T. Foster, Paul S. Keim, David M. Engelthaler, Crystal M. Hepp
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,950
OpenAlex ID: W3166934451