Characterization of insect-specific Culex flavivirus (Flaviviridae) nucleotide sequences in mosquitoes from urban parks in São Paulo, Brazil.

Background: Despite their worldwide occurrence, the distribution and role of insect-specific flaviviruses (ISFs) remain unclear.

Methods: We evaluated the presence of ISFs in mosquitoes collected in São Paulo, Brazil, using reverse transcription and semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Some of the positive samples were subjected to nanopore sequencing.