Arboviruses in the East African Community partner states: a review of medically important mosquito-borne Arboviruses

ABSTRACT

Mosquito-borne diseases, including arbovirus-related diseases, make up a large proportion of infectious disease cases worldwide, causing a serious global public health burden with over 700,000 deaths annually. Mosquito-borne arbovirus outbreaks can range from global to regional. In the East African Community (EAC) region, these viruses have caused a series of emerging and reemerging infectious disease outbreaks. Member states in the EAC share a lot in common including regional trade and transport, some of the factors highlighted to be the cause of mosquito-borne arbovirus disease outbreaks worldwide. In this review, characteristics of 24 mosquito-borne arboviruses indigenous to the EAC are reviewed, including lesser or poorly understood viruses, like Batai virus (BATV) and Ndumu virus (NDUV), which may escape their origins under perfect conditions to establish a foothold in new geographical locations. Factors that may influence the future spread of these viruses within the EAC are addressed. With the continued development observed in the EAC, strategies should be developed by the Community in improving mosquito and mosquito-borne arbovirus surveillance to prevent future outbreaks.

Graphical Abstract

KEYWORDS:

• East African Community
• mosquito-borne arboviruses
• mosquito vector
• public health
• Africa

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge Jean de Dieu Nambajimana from the Key Labaratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, for helping in designing of the maps.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.