Seroprevalence of Toscana Virus and Sandfly Fever Sicilian Virus in European Bat Colonies Measured Using a Neutralization Test

Abstract

Toscana phlebovirus (TOSV) and Sicilian phlebovirus (SFSV) are endemic in the Mediterranean area where they are transmitted to humans by infected sandflies. Vertebrates of several species have been postulated to act as reservoirs of these viruses, but convincing evidence is still awaited. Among them, bats have been suggested, however documented evidence is lacking. Here we tested a total of 329 bats belonging to eight species collected from twelve localities in southern Spain for the presence of neutralizing antibodies specific to TOSV and SFSV. Positive sera were detected in Schreiber’s long-fingered bat (Miniopterus schreibersii), mouse-eared Myotis (Myotis myotis), European free-tailed bat (Tadarida teniotis), and common serotine (Eptesicus serotinus) with the latter showing the highest prevalence rates for SFSV (22.6%) and TOSV (10%). There was no difference between females and males. Results suggest that bats are not likely to play a major role in the natural cycle of these two sandfly-borne phleboviruses. However, large breeding colonies of bats can be used as sentinels for surveillance of the presence of such viruses in a given locality. In addition, capture–recapture studies should be initiated in order to understand better the dynamics of TOSV and SFSV in bat populations.