Phylogeography of urban outbreaks of dengue virus in Jundiaí and Guarujá in the State of São Paulo

Abstract

Both dengue viruses (DENV) types 1 and 2 were introduced in the State of Rio de Janeiro (RJ) in 1986 and 1991, respectively. Since then, they have spread throughout Brazil and became endemic in most areas infested with Aedes aegypti. DENV-3 was introduced in 2001, also in the State of RJ, and DENV-4 was documented in the State of Amazonas in 2008. Therefore, elucidating the temporal and spatial distributional pattern of DENV across time and space is critical to understand its epidemiology. However, the processes that shape the patterns of transmission of DENV in urban scales are not well understood. Particularly so is the impact of factors, such as movement of the human population and urbanization. More than 700 thousand cases of Dengue were reported in Brazil in 2010 with over 300 deaths. Up to March 2011 there were 55.083 cases reported in the State of Sao Paulo. Although the number of cases decreased by a 30% when compared with the total of cases reported by March 2010 (182.805), there was still a dramatic increase of 612%, when compared to the 8.996 cases reported in 2009, constituting an increasingly serious public health problem and highlighting the need to elucidate the pattern of distribution and spatial spread of viral strains. This project will obtain relevant information on the dynamics of DENV spread in urban settings in the State of Sao Paulo aiming to identify socioeconomic and demographic factors associated with the dynamic of viral dispersion that may provide new perspectives to control strategies. (AU)