La Crosse virus (LACV), a leading cause of arboviral encephalitis in children in the United States, is emerging in Appalachia. For local arboviral surveillance, mosquitoes were tested. LACV RNA was detected and isolated from Aedes japonicus mosquitoes. These invasive mosquitoes may significantly affect LACV range expansion and dynamics.
Keywords: Aedes japonicus; Appalachian region; La Crosse virus; United States; Virginia; West Virginia; disease vector; mosquitoes; vector-borne infections; viruses.