Immunological surveys of arbovirus infections in South-East Asia, with special reference to dengue, chikungunya, and Kyasanur Forest disease

Serological surveys have been widely used in South-East Asia to determine the presence and activity of arboviruses. The haemagglutination-inhibition test has been most frequently employed but complement-fixation and neutralization tests have also been used in some investigations.Although virus isolations provide the most conclusive evidence, they can be carried out in a few specialized centres only, and serological surveys are very important for studying the distribution of arboviruses.The surveys have shown that group B arboviruses (principally all four types of dengue, Japanese encephalitis, and West Nile) are widely prevalent. Dengue and Japanese encephalitis viruses are more widespread than West Nile virus, which was not known previously to extend east of India although recent survyes have shown that its range extends to Burma. Japanese encephalitis is frequent in most of South-East Asia but in India is found mainly in eastern and south-eastern parts of the country. Kyasanur Forest disease (KFD) and Langat viruses are the only tick-borne group B arboviruses definitely known to occur in the region, the former in India, the latter in Malaysia. KFD virus has been isolated only from a small focus in Mysore, although human and animal sera containing neutralizing antibodies to this virus have been found sporadically in widely scattered areas. Among the group A arboviruses, chikungunya and Sindbis have been detected in serological surveys, but the former has not yet been found in Malaysia.