One Health preparedness and response for mosquito-borne viruses: a stakeholder- and social network-analysis in the Netherlands.

Background: The emergence of mosquito-borne viruses (MBVs) in Europe emphasizes the need for preparedness and response plans. This requires knowledge integration and collaboration across the human, animal, vector, and environmental health domains, aligning with the One Health approach. Despite the importance of a One Health approach, engaging stakeholders from each domain remains challenging.

Overwintering of Usutu virus in mosquitoes, The Netherlands.

Analyses of mosquito-borne virus outbreaks have revealed the presence of similar virus strains over several years. However, it remains unclear how mosquito-borne viruses can persist over winter, when conditions are generally unfavorable for virus circulation. One potential route for virus persistence is via diapausing mosquitoes.

Sentinel chicken surveillance reveals previously undetected circulation of West Nile virus in the Netherlands.

West Nile virus (WNV) was first detected in the Netherlands in 2020, with circulation observed in birds, mosquitoes, and humans in two geographical areas. Usutu virus (USUV) has been circulating in the Netherlands since 2016. Following the detection of WNV in the Netherlands, we investigated the possible use of petting zoos as urban sentinel sites to examine the extent of WNV and USUV circulation around the two WNV outbreak locations.

Ixodes ricinus as potential vector for Usutu virus.

Usutu virus (USUV) is an emerging flavivirus that is maintained in an enzootic cycle with mosquitoes as vectors and birds as amplifying hosts. In Europe, the virus has caused mass mortality of wild birds, mainly among Common Blackbird (Turdus merula) populations. While mosquitoes are the primary vectors for USUV, Common Blackbirds and other avian species are exposed to other arthropod ectoparasites, such as ticks.