Mosquitoes as Vectors of Mycobacterium ulcerans Based on Analysis of Notifications of Alphavirus Infection and Buruli Ulcer, Victoria, Australia

• Published in: Emerging infectious diseases Vol. 30; no. 9; pp. 1918 - 1921
• Main Authors: Buultjens, Andrew H., Tay, Ee Laine, Yuen, Aidan, Friedman, N. Deborah, Stinear, Timothy P., Johnson, Paul D.R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States U.S. National Center for Infectious Diseases 01.09.2024; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Subjects: Alphavirus - isolation & purification; Alphavirus Infections - epidemiology; Alphavirus Infections - transmission; Analysis; Animals; Aquatic insects; Autumn; Based on Analysis of Notifications of Alphavirus Infection and Buruli Ulcer, Victoria, Australia; Buruli ulcer; Buruli Ulcer - epidemiology; Buruli Ulcer - microbiology; Buruli Ulcer - transmission; Culicidae - microbiology; Culicidae - virology; Disease Notification; Disease transmission; Dispatch; Distribution; Health aspects; Host-bacteria relationships; Humans; Hypotheses; Identification and classification; Infections; Mosquito Vectors - microbiology; Mosquito Vectors - virology; mosquito-borne diseases; Mosquitoes; Mosquitoes as Vectors of; Mycobacteria; Mycobacterium; Mycobacterium ulcerans; Mycobacterium ulcerans - isolation & purification; RNA virus infections; Signal processing; Skin; Surveillance; tuberculosis and other mycobacteria; Ulcers; vector-borne infections; Victoria - epidemiology; viruses; Winter; Victoria; Australia; Victoria Australia; Mycobacterium ulcerans; alphavirus infections; mosquito-borne diseases; viruses; vector-borne infections; Buruli ulcer; tuberculosis and other mycobacteria; Australia
• ISSN: 1080-6040; 1080-6059; 1080-6059
• DOI: 10.3201/eid3009.231073

Alphavirus infections are transmitted by mosquitoes, but the mode of transmission for Mycobacterium ulcerans, which causes Buruli ulcer, is contested. Using notification data for Victoria, Australia, during 2017-2022, adjusted for incubation period, we show close alignment between alphavirus and Buruli ulcer seasons, supporting the hypothesis of mosquito transmission of M. ulcerans.