Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) pose a significant global health threat and are primarily transmitted by mosquitoes. In Cambodia, there are currently 290 recorded mosquito species, with at least 17 of them considered potential vectors of arboviruses to humans. Effective surveillance of virome profiles in mosquitoes from Cambodia is vital, as it could help prevent and control arbovirus diseases in a country where epidemics occur frequently. The objective of this study was to identify and characterize the viral diversity in mosquitoes collected during a one-year longitudinal study conducted in various habitats across Cambodia. For this purpose, we used a metatranscriptomics approach and detected the presence of chikungunya virus in the collected mosquitoes. Additionally, we identified viruses categorized into 26 taxa, including those known to harbor arboviruses such as Flaviviridae and Orthomyxoviridae, along with a group of viruses not yet taxonomically identified and provisionally named "unclassified viruses". Interestingly, the taxa detected varied in abundance and composition depending on the mosquito genus, with no significant influence of the collection season. Furthermore, most of the identified viruses were either closely related to viruses found exclusively in insects or represented new viruses belonging to the Rhabdoviridae and Birnaviridae families. The transmission capabilities of these novel viruses to vertebrates remain unknown.
Keywords: Cambodia; comparative metagenomic; mosquito; mosquito virome; virus discovery.