Differential transmission of Asian and African Zika virus lineages by <i>Aedes aegypti</i> from New Caledonia

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a <i>Flavivirus</i> that is transmitted to humans by <i>Aedes</i> mosquitoes. ZIKV is divided into two phylogenetic lineages, African and Asian. In the Asian lineage, Pacific and American clades have been linked to the recent worldwide outbreak of ZIKV. The aim of this study was to measure the vector competence of <i>Aedes aegypti</i> for seven ZIKV strains belonging to both lineages. We demonstrate that <i>Ae. aegypti</i> from New Caledonia (NC), South Pacific region, is a low-competence vector for Asian ZIKV (&lt;10% transmission efficiency). No significant differences were observed in vector competence with respect to the sampling date and collection site of Asian ZIKV strains used (2014 and 2015 for New Caledonia, Pacific clade, and 2016 for French Guiana, American clade). The ability of the New Caledonian <i>Ae. aegypti</i> to transmit ZIKV is significantly greater for the earlier viral isolates belonging to the African lineage (&gt;37% transmission efficiency after 9 days post-infection) compared to recent ZIKV isolates from African (10% transmission efficiency) and Asian lineages (&lt;10% transmission efficiency). The results of this study demonstrate that <i>Ae. aegypti</i> from NC can become infected and replicate different ZIKV strains belonging to all lineages. Our data emphasize the importance of studying the interaction between vectors and their arboviruses according to each local geographic context. This approach will improve our understanding of arbovirus transmission to prevent their emergence and improve health surveillance.寨卡病毒（Zika virus, ZIKV）属于黄病毒属（Flavivirus），可通过伊蚊属（Aedes）蚊子叮咬传播给人类。寨卡病毒可分为非洲型和亚洲型两个系统发育谱系，其中亚洲型谱系下的太平洋分支与美洲分支与近期全球范围内的寨卡病毒暴发流行密切相关。本研究旨在评估埃及伊蚊（Aedes aegypti）对涵盖两个谱系的7株寨卡病毒的媒介传播能力（vector competence）。实验结果显示，采自南太平洋地区新喀里多尼亚（New Caledonia, NC）的埃及伊蚊对亚洲型寨卡病毒的媒介传播能力较弱，传播效率低于10%。在亚洲型寨卡病毒毒株的采样时间与采集地点维度上，媒介传播能力未出现显著差异——相关毒株分别为2014年、2015年采自新喀里多尼亚的太平洋分支毒株，以及2016年采自法属圭亚那的美洲分支毒株。相较于近期分离的非洲型（传播效率约10%）与亚洲型寨卡病毒毒株，新喀里多尼亚的埃及伊蚊对早期分离的非洲型寨卡病毒毒株的传播能力显著更强，感染后9天的传播效率可达37%以上。本研究结果证实，新喀里多尼亚的埃及伊蚊可感染并复制所有谱系的不同寨卡病毒毒株。本研究数据凸显了结合当地地理环境开展媒介与虫媒病毒（arboviruses）互作研究的重要性，该研究思路有助于深化我们对虫媒病毒传播机制的认知，进而为预防虫媒病毒的新发流行及完善健康监测体系提供理论支撑。