title: Mosquito Surveillance for 15 Years Reveals High Genetic Diversity Among West Nile Viruses in Israel.
abstract: West Nile Virus (WNV) is endemic in Israel and has been the cause of several outbreaks in recent years. In 2000, a countrywide mosquito survey was established to monitor WNV activity and characterize viral genotypes in Israel. We analyzed data from 7135 pools containing 277 186 mosquitoes collected over the past 15 years and, here, report partial sequences of WNV genomes obtained from 102 of the 336 positive mosquito pools. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that cluster 4 and the Mediterranean and Eastern European subtypes of cluster 2 within WNV lineage 1 circulated in Israel, as did WNV lineage 2, highlighting a high genetic diversity of WNV genotypes in our region. As a major crossroads for bird migration between Africa and Eurasia and with a long history of human infection, Israel serves as a resource hub for WNV in Africa and Eurasia and provides valuable information on WNV circulation in these regions.
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer.
authors.forename: Yaniv
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lustig
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Musa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hindiyeh
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Entomology, Ministry of Health, Jerusalem.
authors.forename: Laor
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Orshan
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer.
authors.forename: Leah
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer.
authors.forename: Ravit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Koren
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer.
authors.forename: Shiri
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katz-Likvornik
authors.affiliation: Israel Center for Disease Control, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer.
authors.forename: Hila
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zadka
authors.affiliation: Israel Center for Disease Control, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Aharona
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Glatman-Freedman
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Ella
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mendelson
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Chaim Sheba Medical center, Tel-Hashomer Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: Lester M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Shulman
mesh_terms: D000330:Aedes / Q000821:virology*; D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000821:virology*; D003465:Culex / Q000821:virology*; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007557:Israel; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013997:Time Factors; D014902:West Nile virus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral
keywords: West Nile fever; West Nile virus; flavivirus; mosquito surveillance; phylogenetic analysis