The application of metagenomics in the detection of arboviruses in mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidade). A systematic review

Abstract

Advances in deforestation and climate change directly imply changes in habits and the distribution of Culicidae across the globe, especially mosquitoes of medical importance and the main vectors of arboviruses. The viral metagenomics technique can be an important tool in characterizing the viral diversity present in mosquitoes. Thus, the aim was to identify evidence of the effectiveness of the viral metagenomics technique in detecting arboviruses in mosquitoes. This is a systematic review based on the PRISMA 2020 protocol. The research was carried out in five electronic databases: LILACS, PubMed, SciELO, Scopus and Web of Science, chosen to include studies published in health and interdisciplinary areas, as well as a complementary research on Google Scholar. Studies that used the viral metagenomics approach for the genomic evaluation of arboviruses found in mosquito samples were included, where the results demonstrated the presence of viral diversity and the identification of the genome of probable pathogenic viruses. The protocol was registered on the PROSPERO platform under the number CRD42024484713. 238 studies published in recent years were identified in the electronic databases. According to the inclusion/exclusion criteria, only 20 studies met the objectives for the systematic review. In all the studies, the viral metagenomics technique of genomic sequencing was applied to detect viruses, mainly those related to specific insect viruses, arboviruses, pathogenic viruses, animal viruses and plant viruses belonging to various viral families. Despite the challenges to be overcome in terms of the absence of reference sequences in genomic databases, the effectiveness of the metagenomics technique in characterizing the mosquito virome is clear from the studies, which broadens the understanding of viral diversity.