ADM/V3 Genetic characterization of a neurovirulent West Nile Virus variant associated with a fatal great grey owl infection. Peňazziová K., Korytár Ľ. Pastorek P., Pistl J., Rusňáková D., Szemes T., Čabanová V., Ličková M., Boršová K., Klempa B., Csank T. In Viruses, 2021, Roč. 13, č. 4, art. no. 699 (s. 1-10).

Basic data
OCA1. Surname awarded to the assessed person	Korytár
OCA2. Name awarded to the assessed person	Ľuboš
OCA3. Degrees awarded to the assessed person	Assoc. prof. , DVM, PhD
OCA4. Hyperlink to the entry of the person in the Register of university staff	https://www.portalvs.sk/regzam/detail/20446
OCA5. Area of assessment	study programme animal science · I. degree
OCA6. Category of the research/artistic/other output	scientific output
OCA7. Year of publication of the research/artistic/other output	2021
OCA8. ID of the record in the Central Registry of Publication Activity (CRPA) or the Central Registry of Artistic Activity (CRAA)	253111
OCA9. Hyperlink to the record in CRPA or CRAA	https://app.crepc.sk/?fn=detailBiblioFormChildCM31F&sid=15C3818DA058C71BB77951BED5&seo=CREP%C4%8C-detail-%C4%8Cl%C3%A1nok
Characteristics of the output that is not registered in CRPA or CRAA
OCA10. Hyperlink to the record in another publicly accessible register, catalogue of research/ artistic/other outputs	https://www.webofscience.com/wos/woscc/full-record/WOS:000643769800001
OCA11. Characteristics of the output in the format of the CRPA or the CRAA bibliographic record, if the output is not available in a publicly accessible register or catalogue of outputs	ADM/V3 Genetic characterization of a neurovirulent West Nile Virus variant associated with a fatal great grey owl infection. Peňazziová K., Korytár Ľ. Pastorek P., Pistl J., Rusňáková D., Szemes T., Čabanová V., Ličková M., Boršová K., Klempa B., Csank T. In Viruses, 2021, Roč. 13, č. 4, art. no. 699 (s. 1-10).
OCA12. Type of the output (if the output is not registered in CRPA or CRAA)	article
OCA13. Hyperlink to the webpage where the output is available (full text, other documentation, etc.)	https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/13/4/699
OCA14. Characteristics of the author's contribution	Clinical and laboratory examination of owls in the zoo, collection of biological samples, serological examination, preparation and editing of a scientific article, manuscript revision.
OCA15. Annotation of the output with contextual information concerning the description of creative process and the content of the research/artistic/other activity, etc.	This study reports a fatal case of a Lapland owl infected with West Nile virus (WNV) in the Košice Zoo in eastern Slovakia (central Europe). Tissue samples from the dead owl were used for virus isolation and genetic characterization. The new isolate is genetically closer to the Hungarian, Greek and Bulgarian strains from the Central/Southern European lineage 2 than to the strains previously isolated in Slovakia. Interestingly, it carries the NS3-249P gene, a molecular determinant of virulence associated with higher neurovirulence, which has not been previously reported in Slovakia. Subsequent serological examination of owls in the zoo revealed additional seropositive individuals, suggesting local transmission of WNV. Although no WNV-positive mosquitoes were found, the presence of the main WNV vector, the Culex pipiens complex, together with the described fatal case and other serological findings point to an endemic outbreak of an avian neurovirulent variant of WNV in the area.
Other data
OCA16. Annotation of the output in English	This study reports on a fatal case of a captive great grey owl infected with the West Nile virus (WNV) in the zoological garden Košice, eastern Slovakia (Central Europe). The tissue samples of the dead owl were used for virus isolation and genetic characterization. The novel isolate is genetically closer to Hungarian, Greek, and Bulgarian strains from the central/southern European clade of lineage 2 than to the strains previously isolated in Slovakia. Interestingly, it carries NS3-249P, a molecular virulence determinant associated with higher neurovirulence, which has not previously been observed in Slovakia. Subsequent serological investigation of the captive owls revealed additional seropositive animals, indicating local WNV transmission. Although no WNV-positive mosquitoes were found, the presence of the WNV principal vector Culex pipiens complex together with the described fatal case and further serological findings indicate an endemic focus of bird-neurovirulent WNV variant in the area.
OCA17. List of maximum 5 most significant citations corresponding to the output	Hernandez-Colina, A., Seechurn, N., Costa, T., Lopez, J., Baylis, M., Hesson, J.C. Surveillance of Culex spp. vectors and zoonotic arboviruses at a zoo in the United Kingdom (2024) Heliyon, 10 (4), art. no. e26477, . https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85185528954&doi=10.1016%2fj.heliyon.2024.e26477&partnerID=40&md5=2b286d7b18a58b0d24b00bafa475df00
OCA18. Characteristics of the output's impact on socio-economic practice	The isolation of WNV from the brain of a dead great grey owl in Zoo Košice uncovered the presence of a novel WNV lineage 2 variants in Slovakia. The novel isolate is genetically closer to the Hungarian, Greek, and Bulgarian strains from the central/southern clade than to WNV strains previously detected in Slovakia. According to the proline at position NS3-249 found in the new isolate, it is assumed that this variant may have a higher avian virulence. WNV antibodies were also detected in two other owls in Zoo Košice. Although no WNV RNA was found in mosquito pools, the suitable vector occurrence and the WNV circulation among reservoirs suggest the spread of a new and more virulent variant of WNV in the area.
OCA19. Characteristics of the output and related activities' impact on the educational process	The present work documents the circulation of a new strain of West Nile virus in the territory of the Slovak Republic and extends our knowledge of this zoonotic virus. The impact of the work will be reflected in the teaching of courses with epidemiological content.