Researchers find way to inhibit dengue virus in mosquitoes

28 November 2024

KU Leuven scientists have found a way to inhibit the dengue virus in mosquitoes by giving them an antiviral drug. This may also reduce the mosquitoes' ability to spread the virus, according to a study recently published in Science Advances.

Dengue fever is a tropical disease transmitted by two specific types of mosquito: the Aedes aegypti, which can also carry the yellow fever virus, and the Aedes albopictus, or tiger mosquito. Symptoms of dengue can range from high fever, headache and muscle pain to nausea and vomiting.

Patients usually recover within a week, but in a minority of cases, symptoms can be more severe and the disease can be fatal. Worldwide, an estimated 10,000 people die from dengue each year. In Belgium, 101 cases of the disease were recorded in 2022. All cases were imported from other countries, most of them from Asia.

Reducing transmissibility

To try to contain the virus, researchers at KU Leuven have administered a new antiviral drug to the mosquitoes themselves. The idea is to reduce the transmissibility of the disease in a given region.

"With this drug, the effect is very clear and it stays in the mosquito for a longer period of time"

"If a person takes the drug and is then bitten by a mosquito, the drug is also transferred to the mosquito via the person's blood. We looked at the effect on the virus in the mosquito when this happens," explains Professor Leen Delang from the KU Leuven Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation.

The researchers found a clear effect of the antiviral drug on the presence of the virus in the mosquitoes. "This is not always the case with other antiviral drugs, as we know from previous studies. With this drug, the effect is very clear and it stays in the mosquito for a longer period of time," Delang said. "So you get a double layer of protection: you can take the drug yourself, and you help to reduce the transmissibility."

Preventive use

People could also take the drug prophylactically, meaning without actually having the disease, but with the aim of preventing themselves from becoming infected. This could also reduce the spread of dengue. However, several more studies are needed before the drug could reach the market.

You take a drug to protect yourself from a virus, and at the same time help reduce the spread of the disease"

"Looking at whether an antiviral drug works in the mosquito itself could become the standard for all mosquito-borne viruses," said Delang. "You take a drug to protect yourself from a virus, and at the same time you help reduce the spread of the disease."

^{#FlandersNewsService | A tiger mosquito © AFP PHOTO / VALERY HACHE}

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