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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Mosquito and Fly Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #256158
Title: Potential for stable flies and house flies (Diptera: Muscidae) to transmit Rift Valley fever virus

Author
item TURELL, MICHAEL - Us Army Medical Research Institute
item DOHM, DAVID - Us Army Medical Research Institute
item Geden, Christopher - Chris
item Hogsette, Jerome - Jerry
item Linthicum, Kenneth - Ken

Submitted to: Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/1/2010
Publication Date: 11/1/2010
Citation: Turell, M.J., Dohm, D.J., Geden, C.J., Hogsette, Jr, J.A., Linthicum, K. 2010. Potential for stable flies and house flies (Diptera: Muscidae) to transmit Rift Valley fever virus. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association. 26:445-448.

Interpretive Summary: Rift Valley fever (RVF), a serious disease of cattle, sheep, goats and humans, has been responsible for large outbreaks in Africa and the Middle East that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of human infections and major economic disruption due to loss of livestock and to trade restrictions. Wwe attempted to infect House Flies and Stable Flies with the RVF virus to see if they could transmit the disease. We found that the virus did not grow in either species of flies but Stable Flies could transmit the virus.

Technical Abstract: Rift Valley fever (RVF), a disease of ruminants and humans, has been responsible for large outbreaks in Africa that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of human infections and major economic disruption due to loss of livestock and to trade restrictions. As indicated by the rapid spread of West Nile viral activity across North America since its discovery in 1999 and the rapid and widespread movement of chikungunya virus from Africa throughout the Indian Ocean Islands to Asia and Europe, an introduced exotic arbovirus can be rapidly and widely established across wide geographical regions. Although RVF virus (RVFV) is normally transmitted by mosquitoes, we wanted to determine the potential for this virus to replicate in 2 of the most globally distributed and common higher flies: house flies, Musca domestica L., and stable flies, Stomoxys calcitrans (L.). Neither species supported the replication of RVFV, even after intrathoracic inoculation. However, S. calcitrans was able to mechanically transmit RVFV to susceptible hamsters after probing on infected hamsters with high viral titers. Therefore, S. calcitrans, because of its close association with domestic animals which serve as amplifying hosts of RVFV, should be considered a possible mechanical vector of RVFV, and it may contribute to the rapid spread of a RVF outbreak. Other Stomoxys species present in Africa and elsewhere may play similar roles.