A new phlebovirus, Adana virus, was isolated from a pool of Phlebotomus spp. (Diptera; Psychodidae) in the province of Adana, in the Mediterranean region of Turkey. Genetic analysis based on complete coding of genomic sequences indicated that Adana virus belongs to the Salehabad virus species of the genus Phlebovirus in the family Bunyaviridae. Adana virus is the third virus of the Salehabad virus species for which the complete sequence has been determined. To understand the epidemiology of Adana virus, a seroprevalence study using microneutralization assay was performed to detect the presence of specific antibodies in human and domestic animal sera collected in Adana as well as Mersin province, located 147 km west of Adana. The results demonstrate that the virus is present in both provinces. High seroprevalence rates in goats, sheep, and dogs support intensive exposure to Adana virus in the region, which has not been previously reported for any virus included in the Salehabad serocomplex; however, low seroprevalence rates in humans suggest that Adana virus is not likely to constitute an important public health problem in exposed human populations, but this deserves further studies. IMPORTANCE Until recently, in the genus

Phleboviruses transmitted by sandflies are endemic in the Mediterranean area. The last decade has witnessed the description of an accumulating number of novel viruses. Although, the risk of exposure of vertebrates is globally assessed, detailed geographic knowledge is poor even in Greece and Cyprus where sandfly fever has been recognized for a long time and repeatedly. A total of 1,250 dogs from mainland Greece and Greek archipelago on one hand and 422 dogs from Cyprus on the other hand have been sampled and tested for neutralising antibodies against Toscana virus (TOSV), Sandfly fever Sicilian virus (SFSV), Arbia virus, and Adana virus i.e. four viruses belonging to the 3 sandfly-borne serocomplexes known to circulate actively in the Mediterranean area. Our results showed that (i) SFSV is highly prevalent with 71.9% (50.7–84.9% depending on the region) in Greece and 60.2% (40.0–72.6%) in Cyprus; (ii) TOSV ranked second with 4.4% (0–15.4%) in Greece and 8.4% (0–11.4%) in Cyprus; (iii) Salehabad viruses (Arbia and Adana) displayed also substantial prevalence rates in both countries with values ranging from 0–22.6% depending on the region and on the virus strain used in the test. These results demonstrate that circulation of viruses transmitted by sand flies can be estimated qualitatively using dog sera. As reported in other regions of the Mediterranean, these results indicate that it is time to shift these viruses from the "neglected" status to the "priority" status in order to stimulate studies aiming at defining and quantifying their medical and veterinary importance and possible public health impact. Specifically, viruses belonging to the Sandfly fever Sicilian complex should be given careful consideration. This calls for implementation of direct and indirect diagnosis in National reference centers and in hospital microbiology laboratories and systematic testing of unelucidated febrile illness and central and peripheral nervous system febrile manifestations.

Toscana virus (TOSV; Bunyaviridae, Phlebovirus) is transmitted by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus in the Mediterranean area. One strain of TOSV was isolated from a total of almost 23 000 sandflies collected in Kabylia, Algeria. The complete genome was sequenced, and phylogenetic studies indicated that it was most closely related with TOSV strain from Tunisia within lineage A, which also includes Italian, French and Turkish strains. A seroprevalence study performed on 370 sera collected from people living in the same area showed that almost 50% possessed neutralizing antibodies against TOSV, a rate much higher than that observed in Southern Europe. Sandfly species distribution in the study area suggests that the vector of TOSV in this region belongs to the subgenus Larroussius. These data support the rapid implementation of the diagnosis of TOSV in clinical microbiology laboratories to estimate the burden in patients presenting with neuroinvasive infections and febrile illness.

Sandfly-borne phleboviruses are endemic in the Mediterranean basin. However, levels of exposure of human and animal populations are inadequately researched. Toscana virus (TOSV) is present in Portugal where it causes human infection and disease; in contrast there are few data for sandfly fever Sicilian virus (SFSV) which has neither been isolated nor detected by molecular tests and for which there are only limited serological data. The sera collected from 1160 dogs and 189 cats in southern Portugal were tested for the presence of neutralizing antibodies against TOSV and SFSV, two viruses recognized as distinct serocomplexes in the Mediterranean region. Our data showed (i) seropositivity to TOSV and SFSV in dogs at a rate of 6.8 and 50.8 %, respectively, and (ii) that 3.7 % of cats were seropositive for TOSV. TOSV findings are in line with previous results obtained with less stringent serological assays. Our results for SFSV in dogs clearly indicate that the virus is circulating widely and that humans may be exposed to infection via the dogs. Although the presence of SFSV was suggested by haemagglutination inhibition in 4/1690 human sera in 1974, this is the first time, as far as we know, that SFSV has been shown to circulate so widely in dogs in Portugal. Future studies should be directed at isolating strains of SFSV in Portugal from dogs, humans and sandflies collected in high prevalence regions. As dogs appear to be good sentinels for SFSV, their role as a possible reservoir in the natural cycle should also be considered.

Background: Sandfly-borne phleboviruses are present in North Africa where they can infect humans in regions where Leishmania infantum, the causative agent of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis in the Western Mediterranean basin is present affecting both humans and dogs. We investigated the capacity of dogs to be used as sentinels for sandfly-borne phleboviruses as previously shown for leishmaniasis.

BackgroundToscana virus (TOSV) is an arbovirus belonging to the Bunyaviridae, a family of negative-stranded, enveloped RNA viruses. The virus can be transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected female sand fly of the genus Phlebotomus. Infections are usually asymptomatic but the virus is known to cause aseptic meningitis and/or meningo-encephalitis in the Mediterranean countries. Dogs are good sentinels for detection of viral circulation and are more easily accessible than wild animals.FindingsIn 2013 and 2014, we collected sera from 231 adult dogs living in 26 counties in two departments in Corsica, a French island in the Mediterranean. The virus microneutralization-based seroprevalence assay revealed a seropositivity of 3.9 % dogs on the eastern coast of Corsica.ConclusionsOur study confirms the circulation of TOSV in Corsica. Accordingly, in geographical areas where dogs possess TOSV neutralizing antibodies, direct and indirect TOSV diagnosis should be implemented in patients presenting with febrile illnesses and central nervous system infections such as meningitis and encephalitis.

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A new phlebovirus, Medjerda Valley virus (MVV), was isolated from one pool of Phlebotomus sp. (Diptera; Psychodidae) sandflies trapped in the vicinity of the Utique site, northern Tunisia. Genetic analysis based on complete coding of genomic sequences of the three RNA segments indicated that MVV is most closely related to members of the Salehabad virus species, where it is the fourth virus for which the complete sequence is available. A seroprevalence study was performed to search for neutralizing antibodies in human sera in the same region. The results demonstrate that in this area, MVV can readily infect humans despite low seroprevalence rates. Salehabad species viruses have generally been considered to be a group of viruses with little medical or veterinary interest. This view deserves to be revisited according to our human seroprevalence results, together with high animal infection rate of Adana virus and recent evidence of human infection with Adria virus in Greece. Further studies are needed to investigate the capacity of each specific member of the Salehabad virus species to cause human or animal diseases.