Virus detection in Culicoides biting midges during the BTV-3 outbreak in north-west Germany 2024.
- 1Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany.
- 2Leibniz-Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research, Muencheberg, Germany.
- 3Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany. [email protected].
Abstract
Background
Bluetongue virus (BTV), Schmallenberg virus (SBV) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) are arthropod-borne pathogens that are transmitted by biting midges of the genus Culicoides. Following the initial introduction of BTV in central Europe in 2006, the emergence of SBV in 2011, and the first detection of EHDV in southern Europe in 2022, it became evident that Culicoides-borne viruses pose a significant threat to European livestock. In 2023, BTV serotype 3 was detected for the first time in the Netherlands and subsequently caused a severe outbreak in Germany in 2024. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalences of the viruses in the Culicoides population during the BTV-3 outbreak in north-west Germany in 2024.Methods
Culicoides were caught by UV-light traps on 14 farms from April to October 2024 in north-west Germany. 337,359 of those were selected for virus screening and sorted into 7,549 pools based on their morphology. The pools were tested by real-time RT-PCRs for the genomes of SBV, BTV and EHDV. Virus-positive pools were further analyzed in species-specific PCRs to identify the Culicoides species present.Results
A total of 1,359 pools (18.0%) tested positive for BTV-RNA, while 402 pools (5.3%) showed SBV-RNA. None of the pools were positive for EHDV. The majority of the positive pools contained specimens of the Culicoides subgenus Avaritia Fox. A smaller part belonged to the subgenus Culicoides Latreille. The taxa most commonly found in the virus-positive pools of the subgenus Avaritia were C. obsoletus clade O1, C. scoticus and C. dewulfi. The most prevalent taxa in the virus-positive pools of the subgenus Culicoides were C. punctatus, C. pulicaris and C. lupicaris haplotype L1.Conclusions
We confirmed the ongoing circulation of SBV as well as an extensive BTV circulation in the Culicoides vectors of the subgenera Avaritia and Culicoides in north-west Germany in 2024. Despite belonging to different virus families, the circulation patterns of BTV and SBV observed over the months were very similar, showing peaks in August.
Related
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- Infection Dynamics and Clinical Signs of Bluetongue Virus Serotype 3 in Cattle and Transmission to Culicoides Vectors
BibTeX
@article{zeiske2026virus,
title = {{Virus detection in Culicoides biting midges during the BTV-3 outbreak in north-west Germany 2024.}},
author = {Sophie Zeiske and Helge Kampen and Dorothee Scheuch and Franziska Sick and Martin Beer and Anja Voigt and Doreen Werner and Kerstin Wernike},
journal = {Parasites \& vectors},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1186/s13071-026-07767-6},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42963790},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Virus detection in Culicoides biting midges during the BTV-3 outbreak in north-west Germany 2024.
AU - Sophie Zeiske
AU - Helge Kampen
AU - Dorothee Scheuch
AU - Franziska Sick
AU - Martin Beer
AU - Anja Voigt
AU - Doreen Werner
AU - Kerstin Wernike
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - Parasites & vectors
DO - 10.1186/s13071-026-07767-6
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42963790
AB - Background Bluetongue virus (BTV), Schmallenberg virus (SBV) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) are arthropod-borne pathogens that are transmitted by biting midges of the genus Culicoides. Following the initial introduction of BTV in central Europe in 2006, the emergence of SBV in 2011, and the first detection of EHDV in southern Europe in 2022, it became evident that Culicoides-borne viruses pose a significant threat to European livestock. In 2023, BTV serotype 3 was detected for the first time in the Netherlands and subsequently caused a severe outbreak in Germany in 2024. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalences of the viruses in the Culicoides population during the BTV-3 outbreak in north-west Germany in 2024.Methods Culicoides were caught by UV-light traps on 14 farms from April to October 2024 in north-west Germany. 337,359 of those were selected for virus screening and sorted into 7,549 pools based on their morphology. The pools were tested by real-time RT-PCRs for the genomes of SBV, BTV and EHDV. Virus-positive pools were further analyzed in species-specific PCRs to identify the Culicoides species present.Results A total of 1,359 pools (18.0%) tested positive for BTV-RNA, while 402 pools (5.3%) showed SBV-RNA. None of the pools were positive for EHDV. The majority of the positive pools contained specimens of the Culicoides subgenus Avaritia Fox. A smaller part belonged to the subgenus Culicoides Latreille. The taxa most commonly found in the virus-positive pools of the subgenus Avaritia were C. obsoletus clade O1, C. scoticus and C. dewulfi. The most prevalent taxa in the virus-positive pools of the subgenus Culicoides were C. punctatus, C. pulicaris and C. lupicaris haplotype L1.Conclusions We confirmed the ongoing circulation of SBV as well as an extensive BTV circulation in the Culicoides vectors of the subgenera Avaritia and Culicoides in north-west Germany in 2024. Despite belonging to different virus families, the circulation patterns of BTV and SBV observed over the months were very similar, showing peaks in August.
SN - 1756-3305
ER -