Brooke Schmidt

Helios Scholar

Phleboviruses and orthobunyaviruses affect both humans and livestock, causing mild to severe symptoms. These viruses are distributed throughout North America, Europe, and Africa. In collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), our group set out to better understand the viral landscape of Phlebo and Orthobunya viruses in the Southwestern United States (U.S.). Using pan-detection assays and reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), we have tested 316 pools of Culex mosquitoes across Arizona, California, and Utah for the presence of Phleboviruses and Orthobunyaviruses. Through the use of resulting melt peaks, we were able to better differentiate which Phlebo and Orthobunya viruses may be circulating within the Southwest. These results demonstrate the field applicability of this protocol to determine the presence of phleboviruses and orthobunyaviruses in mosquito pools.