Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

West Nile Virus Seroprevalence in Wild Birds and Equines in Madrid Province, Spain

Richard AJ Williams
* ,
Hillary A Criollo Valencia
,
Irene López Márquez
ORCID logo ,
Fernando González González
ORCID logo ,
Francisco Llorente
,
Miguel Ángel Jiménez-Clavero
ORCID logo ,
Núria Busquets
ORCID logo ,
Marta Mateo Barrientos
ORCID logo ,
Gustavo Ortiz-Díez
ORCID logo ,
Tania Ayllón Santiago
*
Version 1 : Received: 25 April 2024 / Approved: 25 April 2024 / Online: 26 April 2024 (07:53:25 CEST)

How to cite: Williams, R.A.; Criollo Valencia, H.A.; López Márquez, I.; González González, F.; Llorente, F.; Jiménez-Clavero, M.Á.; Busquets, N.; Mateo Barrientos, M.; Ortiz-Díez, G.; Ayllón Santiago, T. West Nile Virus Seroprevalence in Wild Birds and Equines in Madrid Province, Spain. Preprints 2024, 2024041696. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.1696.v1 Williams, R.A.; Criollo Valencia, H.A.; López Márquez, I.; González González, F.; Llorente, F.; Jiménez-Clavero, M.Á.; Busquets, N.; Mateo Barrientos, M.; Ortiz-Díez, G.; Ayllón Santiago, T. West Nile Virus Seroprevalence in Wild Birds and Equines in Madrid Province, Spain. Preprints 2024, 2024041696. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.1696.v1

Abstract

West Nile virus (WNV) is a re-emerging flavivirus, primarily circulating among avian hosts and mosquito vectors, causing periodic outbreaks in humans and horses, often leading to neuroinvasive disease and mortality. Spain has reported several outbreaks, most notably in 2020 with seventy-seven human cases and eight fatalities. WNV has been serologically detected in horses in the Community of Madrid, but to our knowledge, it has never been reported from wild birds in this region. To estimate the seroprevalence of WNV in wild birds and horses in the Community of Madrid, 159 wild birds at a wildlife rescue center and 25 privately owned equines were sampled. Serum from thirteen birds (8.2%) and one equine (4.0%) tested positive with a WNV competitive ELISA designed for WNV antibodies detection, but sensitive to cross-reacting antibodies to other flaviviruses. VNT confirmed WNV antibodies in four bird samples (2.5%), and antibodies to undetermined flavivirus in four additional samples. One equine sample (4.0%) tested positive for WNV, although this horse previously resided in a WN-endemic area. ELISA positive birds included both migratory and resident species, juveniles and adults. Two seropositive juvenile birds suggest local flavivirus transmission within the Community of Madrid, while WNV seropositive adult birds may have been infected outside Madrid. The potential circulation of flaviviruses, including WNV, in birds in Madrid Community raises concerns, although further surveillance in mosquitos, wild birds and horses in Madrid is necessary to establish the extent of transmission, and the principal species involved.

Keywords

Flavivirus; West Nile virus; Birds; Equines; Seroprevalence; Central Spain

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Animal Science, Veterinary Science and Zoology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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