Presence of sandfly-borne phleboviruses of two antigenic complexes (Sandfly fever Naples virus and Sandfly fever Sicilian virus) in two different bio-geographical regions of Tunisia demonstrated by a microneutralisation-based seroprevalence study in dogs

A seroprevalence study in Tunisia reveals that sandfly-borne phleboviruses, including Toscana virus, Punique virus, and Sicilian virus, are present in the governorate of Kairouan, with seroprevalence rates of 7.5%, 43.5%, and 38.1% respectively. The study demonstrates that dogs can serve as sentinels for these viruses, similar to their role in detecting leishmaniasis. While data from Bizerte was limited due to hemolysis and cytotoxicity issues, the validated results aligned with those from Kairouan. This suggests a significant presence of sandfly-borne phleboviruses in Tunisia, warranting further investigation into both animal and human populations.

Sakhria, S., Alwassouf, S., Fares, W., Bichaud, L., Dachraoui, K., Alkan, C., Zoghlami, Z., de Lamballerie, X., Zhioua, E., & Charrel, R. N. (2014). Presence of sandfly-borne phleboviruses of two antigenic complexes (Sandfly fever Naples virus and Sandfly fever Sicilian virus) in two different bio-geographical regions of Tunisia demonstrated by a microneutralisation-based seroprevalence study in dogs. Parasites & Vectors, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-014-0476-8