Flavivirus serologi

Vector-borne flaviviruses are posing a threat to both animal and human health. In Europe, there are three flaviviruses (Usutu virus, USUV; West Nile virus, WNV; tick-borne encephalitis virus, TBEV) cirulating that cause potentially fatal encephalitis in both humans and horses, and further viruses may spread here. However, clinical diagnoses as well as epidemiological studies are severely hampered by the tendency of flavivirus serological cross-reactions. This project will review what is currently known about seroprevalence of flaviviruses in animals in Europe, and assess the methods available at the partner insitutes to detect and differentiate antibodies. The outputs of the project include a baseline of seroprevalence based on past studies as well as establishment of the major knowledge gaps, and an updated recommended pipeline for antibody detection in clinical cases as well as serological studies. The proposed collaboration will also allow sharing of serological panels for evaluation of new methods, and sharing protocols for in-house assays. We will additional assess the capacity of present methods to screen for TBEV antibodies in bulk milk, given that consumption of milk has caused outbreaks.

The impact of the project includes improved diagnostic capacity, which will not only facilitate rapid specific diagnosis of these serious, emerging diseases, but also enable future research projects, that can address the knowledge gaps we identify.