Detection of West Nile virus lineage 2 in Culex mosquitoes, Greece, 2012.

To gain insight into the strain(s) causing human cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection in Greece in 2012, mosquitoes were collected and tested for probable WNV infection. WNV lineage 2 sequences were obtained from two of 14 Culex spp. pools collected in Xanthi Prefecture, and especially in the municipality with the highest incidence in Greece. As in the 2 previous years, the strain contains the H249P substitution in the NS3 protein. It seems that this specific strain is fully established in Greece and causes large-scale outbreaks. Thus, prevention and control measures have to be taken, while enhanced surveillance is needed.