Assessment of viral and epidemiological fitness differences between two lineages of Dengue serotype 1 co-circulating during 2010-2012 in São José do Rio Preto, SP

Abstract

Dengue is an acute febrile disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus), which has become a major public health problem worldwide. Approximately 40% of world's population live in endemic areas and the eradication is directly related to the control of its vector. Currently, Dengue virus is considered one of the major arbovirus because of its spread to several tropical and subtropical regions where the vector fits best. It's belongs to the Flavivirus genus and has four serotypes (1-4) subdivided into genotypes and lineages with different biological characteristics and complex dynamics of circulation. Several factors influence the replacement of a genotype and/or lineage on population. This project will assess viral and epidemiological fitness differences in vitro, in vivo and in silico between isolates from two lineages of DENV-1 co-circulating during 2010-2012 in São José do Rio Preto, chosen based on previous phylogenetic analysis. The study has being developed at Laboratório de Pesquisa em Virologia, FAMERP, and will perform analyzes considering the virus, vector and host interaction to correlate molecular, biological and epidemiological characteristics between the lineages to provide data on the fitness of DENV. (AU)