Occurrence of oropouch Although the Amazon has seen resurgences of the virus for decades, the pathogen has historically caused little damage to other parts of the world. But this seems to be changing. In 2024, the virus showed that it could be transmitted.
Most of this year’s more than 11,000 infections occurred in Brazil and Peru, where the virus has long been known, but by 2024 it could also spread to Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Panama, and Cuba. Infections have been confirmed, with 603 cases reported in the latter. And the first transmission in Japan. Infected travelers also carried the virus to North America and Europe. This year, there have been two confirmed cases in Canada and 94 in the United States, with 90 cases reported in Florida, while 30 imported cases were found in Spain, Italy and Germany.
The situation is alarming for those who study oropouches and other arboviruses, a family of viruses transmitted by arthropods such as mosquitoes and ticks. Although there are clues about its infection cycle, there is insufficient information to accurately predict Oroporchi’s future behavior. “There are several pieces to the puzzle, but we don’t have complete certainty about what role each one plays,” said Dr. Seth, director of research at SEK International University and head of the university’s Emerging Diseases and Epidemiology Group. said Juan Carlos Navarro,
The first symptoms of the disease appear suddenly 3 to 12 days after the bite and usually last for 4 to 6 days. Symptoms include headache, muscle and joint pain, chills, nausea, vomiting, and light sensitivity. Skin rashes and bleeding from the gums and nose may occur, and in severe cases, meningitis and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain and its membranes) may occur. Oropouch infections, although unpleasant, usually do not cause complications. However, Brazil recorded two deaths linked to the virus for the first time this year.
In areas where cases have occurred, researchers are increasingly detecting something that could explain the emergence and spread of the virus: deforestation. Converting natural land to grow crops, drill for oil, and extract resources “seems to be a major driver of outbreaks,” Navarro said. “It brings together three connections: the virus, the vector, and the human.”
Natural cycle with gaps
In 1955, a young charcoal burner became ill after spending two weeks working and sleeping in the woods near the Oroporch River in Trinidad and Tobago. He had a fever for three days. This was the first recorded case of Oroporchi virus disease. Since then, dozens of outbreaks have been reported, most of them in the Amazon basin.
Navarro has dedicated 30 years to researching arboviruses, including dengue fever, equine encephalitis, mayaro, and since 2016, oropouchi. There are two transmission cycles. In the jungle, carriers of the Oropouch virus (animals that continue to circulate the virus even if they themselves do not become ill) are thought to be non-human primates such as neotropical marmosets, capuchin monkeys, sloths, rodents, and birds. It is considered. Viruses have been isolated from these organisms, or antibodies have been discovered in their systems. In fact, the disease is also known as “sloth fever.” Navarro said it’s unclear what role Navarro and other non-human primates play in the infection cycle. “They’re likely amplifying their hosts” — meaning they’re likely allowing the virus to multiply quickly and to high concentrations inside their bodies.
When an epidemic occurs among humans, a second infection cycle occurs. In this case, humans become the amplification hosts and the virus is transmitted between humans by blood-sucking insects. Chironomids are the main carriers of pathogens between humans Culicoides paraensis, It is about the size of a pinhead and is found from Argentina to the United States. Some studies suggest that Culex mosquitoes and Aedes mosquitoes may also transmit Oroporchi. In fact, the virus was first isolated in Trinidad and Tobago. Coquillettidia venezuerensis, Another type of mosquito.
