Article ID: JJID.2019.296
Oropouche Virus (OROV) is a single-stranded negative-sense RNA arbovirus transmitted to humans by the midge Culicoides paraenesis causing a disease known as Oropouche fever. In Brazil, outbreaks of the virus have been reported to be restricted to the Central-Northern region of the country. However, its incidence is underestimated mainly due to the virus clinical similarities with other arbovirus diseases including dengue (DENV), chikungunya (CHIKV), and zika (ZIKV), and the lack of specific diagnostic tests. Here, we report for the first time OROV detection in saliva and urine samples and the first cases of OROV autochthone infections in Metropolitan region of Salvador, Bahia a Northeastern capital in the coast of Brazil. Serum, saliva and urine samples negative for DENV, CHIKV, and ZIKV were tested for OROV using a RT-nested-PCR protocol in which we found two positive samples of serum, two of saliva and one of urine. This report shows the need for an efficient surveillance system to control the spread of this virus in the population and suggests the use of saliva and urine samples as an alternative for the detection of OROV when serum samples are not available.
