The genus Phlebovirus is considered a medically important group of viruses due to the pathogenic behavior of some species. In the Americas, several species of this genus have been identified, most of which are found in Panamá. However, the lack of knowledge about the circulation of phleboviruses in Colombia led us to ask several questions, including the distribution of this pathogen in the Americas, especially in Caribbean coastal areas where ideal conditions for phlebovirus vectors exist. Here, we report the first detection of the genus Phlebovirus in phlebotomine sandfly communities from the Caribbean coast of Colombia. Sandflies were collected and pooled for ribonucleic acid (RNA) extraction and retrotranscription, all pools were tested for 18S ribosomal RNA and screened for phleboviruses by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Positive products for the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) detection were sequenced. Four pools of 58 were positive for viruses belonging to the Punta Toro complex, Aguacate complex, Old-World viruses, and one related to sloth phleboviruses. This is the first evidence of phleboviruses in the Caribbean region of Colombia, especially of species related to the Punta Toro and Aguacate complex.

La unión indisoluble de las variables salud humana, animal y ambiental, es la base de la visión de "Una Salud" el entendimiento de los fenómenos biológicos bajo una salud facilita el abordaje frente a la complejidad de los desafíos sanitarios globales y de la salud pública (1). Bajo la iniciativa "One Health”, se integran disciplinas y se promueven programas, políticas, leyes e investigaciones para lograr mejores resultados en la vigilancia, diagnóstico, prevención y control de las enfermedades (2,3,4). Este enfoque colaborativo es fundamental ante la creciente amenaza de enfermedades zoonóticas emergentes y reemergentes.

La enfermedad de Chagas es una zoonosis causada por el parásito Trypanosoma cruzi y es transmitida principalmente por triatominos. Se considera un problema de salud complejo, ya que es una enfermedad tropical desatendida relacionada con problemas sociales. Es común en zonas rurales desde México hasta Sudamérica. La mayoría de las veces en la fase aguda se presenta con síntomas característicos de un síndrome febril indiferenciado como fiebre, mialgia, cefalea, adinamia y dolor abdominal que confunden el diagnóstico con otros agentes infecciosos. En la fase crónica es frecuente encontrar pacientes que desarrollan problemas cardíacos y digestivos graves. Actualmente, la enfermedad de Chagas tiene una incidencia anual de 30.000 nuevos casos, con más de 100 millones de personas en riesgo de infección, más de 7 millones de personas afectadas en todo el mundo y más de 12.000 muertes cada año, principalmente en países latinoamericanos (1). En 2024 en Colombia se reportaron 947 casos crónicos y 18 casos agudos de enfermedad de Chagas, la mayoría se presentaron en la región andina. En la región del Caribe las tasas de prevalencia son superiores al 15 % (2).

Phlebotomine sand flies are dipterans that transmit leishmaniasis, bartonellosis, and arboviruses of public health importance. Colombia is a tropical country with high annual incidences of arboviruses, such as dengue and, more recently, yellow fever, all of which have similar symptoms. This study characterized the viruses circulating in phlebotomine sand flies in two departments in the Colombian Caribbean. Between August 2023 and December 2024, a descriptive study was conducted in the Departments of Córdoba and Cesar in Colombia. Four municipalities were selected per department, and four insect captures were performed using CDC light traps. Specimens were taxonomically identified and organized into groups according to species and study area, and total RNA was extracted for NGS analysis. Short sequences were quality-assessed, assembled using MEGAHIT to obtain contigs, and classified using DIAMOND-MEGAN6 to select viral genomic sequences for phylogenetic analysis. Thirteen viral families were identified, including a virus from the family Rhabdoviridae in Pi. evansi in the department of Cesar and another from the family Dicistroviridae in Lutzomyia gomezi in both departments. Two genome segments of the family Phenuiviridae were found in Lutzomyia gomezi in the department of Córdoba, Colombia. Sand flies harbor a diverse range of viral families, some of which are previously undescribed, and can be studied to determine their taxonomy and assess their potential to infect vertebrate cells or their interactions with medically important pathogens such as Leishmania spp.

Background: Rhabdoviridae includes many viruses, among which rabies virus is notable. Other genera in this family can infect mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and plants. Methods: Between October 2022 and July 2023, mosquitoes were collected from some municipalities in the Córdoba and Cesar departments, Colombian Caribbean. Pools were formed according to taxonomic identification and geographic area. RNA was extracted, and sequencing was performed using MGI-G50 platform. Bioinformatics analyses were performed using the Galaxy platform and the Diamond-MEGAN program. The MAFFT program was used for sequence alignment. The Prokka program was used for genome annotation, IQ-TREE was used for phylogenetic reconstruction, and iTOL was used to visualize and edit the tree. The Clustal Omega program of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL-EBI) was used to construct a percent similarity matrix, and Unipro UGENE was used to align the amino acids of the L protein with the conserved consensus sequence (GDNQ). Results: Two new genomes showing high similarity to Almendravirus arboretum (ABTV), and Almendravirus chico (RCHV) were identified in a single pool of Johnbelkinia ulopus mosquitoes collected in Córdoba. Additionally, a third genome with a low similarity percentage to the L segment of the Almendravirus menghai (MRV) from China was detected in Anopheles apicimacula from Cesar. Conclusions: This is the first study in Colombia that reports the ABTV and RCHV in Jb. ulopus mosquitoes and the first report of a phylogenetically similar sequence to the MRV, which could be a new virus of the Rhabdoviridae family.