An investigation into the epidemiology of chikungunya virus across neglected regions of Indonesia

Abstract

Background Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an important emerging and re-emerging public health problem worldwide. In Indonesia, where the virus is endemic, epidemiological information from outside of the main islands of Java and Bali is limited. Methodology/Principal Findings Four hundred and seventy nine acutely febrile patients presenting between September 2017 – 2019 were recruited from three city hospitals situated in Ambon, Maluku; Banjarmasin, Kalimantan; and Batam, Batam Island as part of a multi-site observational study. CHIKV RNA was detected in a single serum sample while a separate sample was IgM positive. IgG seroprevalence was also low across all three sites, ranging from 1.4 – 3.2%. The single RT-PCR positive sample from this study and 24 archived samples collected during other recent outbreaks throughout Indonesia were subjected to complete coding region sequencing to assess the genetic diversity of Indonesian strains. Phylogenetic analysis revealed all to be of a single clade, which was distinct from CHIKV strains recently reported from neighbouring regions including the Philippines and the Pacific Islands. Conclusions/Significance Chikungunya virus strains from recent outbreaks across Indonesia all belong to a single clade. However, low-level seroprevalence and molecular detection of CHIKV across the three study sites appears to contrast with the generally high seroprevalences that have been reported for non-outbreak settings in Java and Bali, and may account for the relative lack of CHIKV epidemiological data from other regions of Indonesia.