Publicaties

Background Bartonella quintana is a body louse-borne bacterium causing bacteremia and infective endocarditis. We aimed to describe B. quintana detection among arthropods and their hosts. Methods We searched databases in PubMed Central/MEDLINE, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science from January 1, 1915 (the year of B. quintana discovery) to January 1, 2024, to identify publications containing specific search terms relating to B. quintana detection ...

Culex pipiens (Linnaeus, 1758) mosquitoes search plant sources of sugars to cope with the energetic demand of various physiological processes. The crop as part of the digestive system is devoted to the storage of sugar-based meal obtained from various nectars sources. The profiling of sugars and metabolites in the Culex pipiens’ crop is scarce, and only few studies used Liquid Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS), which provides broad ...

CRISPR-based gene drives have the potential to spread within populations and are considered as promising vector control tools. A doublesex-targeting gene drive was able to suppress laboratory Anopheles mosquito populations in small and large cages, and it is considered for field application. Challenges related to the field-use of gene drives and the evolving regulatory framework suggest that systems able to modulate or revert the action of gene ...

Safe and effective severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines are crucial to fight against the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Most vaccines are based on a mutated version of the Spike glycoprotein [K986P/V987P (S-2P)] with improved stability, yield and immunogenicity. However, S-2P is still produced at low levels. Here, we describe the V987H mutation that increases by two-fold the production of the recombinant ...

The invasive mosquito species Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894) is rapidly spreading in Europe, posing an increasing threat because of its high vector competence for chikungunya and dengue virus. An integrative and eco-friendly control of these populations is required to prevent mosquito-borne disease outbreaks. Traditionally-used insecticides or other chemical control agents are often expensive, harmful to the environment, strictly controlled ...

In arthropod-associated microbial communities, insect-specific viruses (ISVs) are prevalent yet understudied due to limited infectivity outside their natural hosts. However, ISVs might play a crucial role in regulating mosquito populations and influencing arthropod-borne virus transmission. Some studies have indicated a core virome in mosquitoes consisting of mostly ISVs. Employing single mosquito metagenomics, we comprehensively profiled the ...

Background
European epidemic intelligence (EI) systems receive vast amounts of information and data on disease outbreaks and potential health threats. The quantity and variety of available data sources for EI, as well as the available methods to manage and analyse these data sources, are constantly increasing. Our aim was to identify the difficulties encountered in this context and which innovations, according to EI practitioners, could ...

Understanding the distribution patterns of medically significant sandflies is crucial for effective vector and disease control planning. This study focused on investigating the abundance and distribution of phlebotomine sandflies, specifically emphasizing Phlebotomus pedifer (Diptera: Psychodidae), the vector of Leishmania aethiopica responsible for cutaneous leishmaniasis in the highlands of southern Ethiopia. The study employed CDC light traps ...