Fast surveillance response reveals the introduction of a new yellow fever virus sub-lineage in 2021, in Minas Gerais, Brazil
Miguel de Souza Andrade, Fabrício Souza Campos, Cirilo Henrique de Oliveira, Ramon Silva Oliveira, Aline Alves Scarpellini Campos, Marco Antônio Barreto de Almeida, Vagner Fonseca, Danilo Simonini-Teixeira, Anaiá da Paixão Sevá, Andrea Oliveira Dias Temponi, Fernando Maria Magalhães, Danielle Costa Capistrano Chaves, Maira Alves Pereira, Ludmila Oliveira Lamounier, Givaldo Gomes de Menezes, Sandy Micaele Aquino-Teixeira, Maria Eduarda Gonçalves-dos-Santos, Sofía Bernal‐Valle, Nícolas Felipe Drumm Müller, Jáder da Cruz Cardoso, Edmilson dos Santos, Maria Angélica Mares-Guia, George Rêgo Albuquerque, Alessandro Romano, Ana Cláudia Franco, Bergmann Morais Ribeiro, Paulo Michel Roehe, Filipe Vieira Santos de Abreu
Abstract
BACKGROUND: In Brazil, the yellow fever virus (YFV) is maintained in a sylvatic cycle involving wild mosquitoes and non-human primates (NHPs). The virus is endemic to the Amazon region; however, waves of epidemic expansion reaching other Brazilian states sporadically occur, eventually causing spillovers to humans. OBJECTIVES: To report a surveillance effort that led to the first confirmation of YFV in NHPs in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), Southeast region, in 2021. METHODS: A surveillance network was created, encompassing the technology of smartphone applications and coordinated actions of several research institutions and health services to monitor and investigate NHP epizootics. FINDINGS: When alerts were spread through the network, samples from NHPs were collected and YFV infection confirmed by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and genome sequencing at an interval of only 10 days. Near-complete genomes were generated using the Nanopore MinION sequencer. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that viral genomes were related to the South American genotype I, clustering with a genome detected in the Amazon region (state of Pará) in 2017, named YFVPA/MG sub-lineage. Fast YFV confirmation potentialised vaccination campaigns. MAIN CONCLUSIONS: A new YFV introduction was detected in MG 6 years after the beginning of the major outbreak reported in the state (2015-2018). The YFV strain was not related to the sub-lineages previously reported in MG. No human cases have been reported, suggesting the importance of coordinated surveillance of NHPs using available technologies and supporting laboratories to ensure a quick response and implementation of contingency measures to avoid YFV spillover to humans.