Dengue virus detected in mosquitoes north of the Alps for the first time
Keystone-SDA
The cantonal laboratory of Basel City has detected the dengue virus for the first time in a study of captured tiger mosquitoes. This is the first published detection of this virus in mosquitoes north of the Alps, according to the laboratory.
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The experts came across this finding in a pilot monitoring sample from 2024 from a pool of the Aedes genus, which includes the Asian tiger mosquito. Under the local climatic conditions, this is a “rare event”, the cantonal laboratory wrote on Tuesday.
The dengue virus has spread rapidly around the world in recent years. The number of cases has risen sharply and the first cases of transmission have also occurred in Europe. However, no dengue transmission has been reported in Switzerland to date.
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According to the Basel cantonal laboratory, a dengue infection without a travel background is possible in principle, but in contrast to last year’s chikungunya transmission in Alsace, it is much less likely. The reason for this is that transmission of the dengue virus requires significantly higher temperatures, the laboratory said in a statement.
The time window in which a mosquito can pick up the virus from an infected person and pass it on is therefore limited to the high summer months.
The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) also considers the risk of dengue fever transmission in Switzerland to be limited. Although there is a fundamental risk of dengue transmission in Switzerland, this is “very low and exists only under certain conditions”, according to the FOPH website. “For example, mosquitoes would have to pick up the virus from a traveller infected with the dengue virus and transmit it to another person.”
Adapted from German by AI/ts
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