Spiros Mourelatos

• BSc, MSc, PhD
• Chair at Ecodevelopment S.A.

In the summer of 2010 an epidemic of West Nile virus (WNV) occurred in Central Macedonia, Greece, with 197 human neuroinvasive disease (WNND) cases. In the following years the virus spread to new areas, with a total of 76 WNND cases in 2011, and 109 WNND cases in 2012 (14 and 12 WNND cases, respectively, in Central Macedonia). We established a surv...

During summer 2010, 262 human cases including 35 deaths from West Nile virus (WNV) infection were reported from Central Macedonia, Greece. Evidence from mosquitoes, birds and blood donors demonstrated that the epidemic was caused by WNV lineage 2, which until recently was considered of low virulence. We conducted a household seroprevalence study to...

The individual filtering rates of the cladocerans in Creteil Lake were measured in the daytime with ¹⁴C-labeled Chlorella during a seasonal survey. This mesotrophic, shallow, polymictic lake is characterized by small algae (< 25 μm) and cladocerans (< 1.3 mm). Multiple regression models were established for each genus and for all the cladoceran...

A diel survey of in situ species-specific zooplankton clearance rates (with radioactively labelled Chlorella cells) was conducted in the shallow lake of Créteil characterized by small-sized planktonic forms (algae<10μm and zooplankton <1.3 mm). Experiments were performed every 4h at two depths (1 and 4m). Power functions relating individual filteri...

In this research, an innovative design is set up for regular provision of precision agriculture services, within the framework of fertilization consultancy. The central node of the chain is a geographic information system (GIS), while a 5x5m point grid is the information carrier. Decision-making is supported by machine learning algorithms developed...

The Region of Central Macedonia (RCM) in Northern Greece recorded the highest number of human West Nile virus (WNV) infections in Greece, despite considerable local mosquito control actions. We examined spatial patterns and associations of mosquito levels, infected mosquito levels, and WNV human cases (WNVhc) across the municipalities of this regio...

We investigated the prevalence and genetic diversity of Wolbachia pipientis strains in Aedes albopictus populations in Greece. Using a combination of PCR and Sanger sequencing techniques, we genotyped Wolbachia strains in 105 mosquitoes collected across eight different administrative regions in 2021. We found a high prevalence of Wolbachia in both...

We investigated the prevalence and genetic diversity of Wolbachia pipientis strains in Aedes albopictus populations in Greece. Using a combination of PCR and Sanger sequencing techniques, we genotyped Wolbachia strains in 105 mosquitoes collected across eight different prefectures in 2021. We found a high prevalence of Wolbachia in both male (90%)...

Mosquito-borne diseases’ impact on human health is among the most prominent of all communicable diseases. With limited pool of tools to contrast these diseases, public health focus remains preventing mosquito-human contacts. Applying a hierarchical spatio-temporal Bayesian model on West Nile virus (WNV) surveillance data from Greece, we aimed to in...

Utilizing an extension of Pearson’s correlation in the case of random vectors, we improve theempirical dynamic modeling causal analysis of non-linear systems. To prove the effectiveness of the use of such an extension we analyze two real-world examples, the paramecium-didinium protozoan system and the influence of environmental variables on mosquit...

Profitability is not given the necessary attention in contemporary precision agriculture. In this work, a new tool, namely ProFit, is developed within a pre-existing farm management system, namely ifarma, to assess the profitability of precision agriculture applications in extended crops, as most of the current solutions available on the market res...

Profitability is an underestimated concept in precision agriculture. In this research, a new module is developed within a pre-existing farm management system to assess the profitability of precision agriculture applications in extended crops. The module is regulated on a 5-meter spatial resolution, thus allowing scaling up of original and processed...

Today, bridging precision agriculture (PA) with farm management is a high priority. To answer to this challenge, a precision fertilization service for extended crops was embedded as a new module in the platform of a pre-existing cloud-based farm management information system (FMIS), namely ‘ifarma’. The new module (namely, ‘PreFer’) uses interopera...

In 2022, Greece was the second most seriously affected European country in terms of the West Nile virus (WNV), after Italy. Specifically, Central Macedonia was the region with the most reported human cases (81.5%). In the present study, 30,816 female Culex pipiens sensu lato mosquitoes were collected from May to September 2022 in the seven regional...

The scope of this research was to provide rice growers with optimal N-rate recommendations through precision agriculture applications. To achieve this goal, a prediction rice yield model was constructed, based on soil data, remote sensing data (optical and radar), climatic data, and farming practices. The dataset was collected from a rice crop surf...

Human and animal vector-borne diseases, particularly mosquito-borne diseases, are emerging or re-emerging worldwide. Six Aedes invasive mosquito (AIM) species were introduced to Europe since the 1970s: Aedes aegypti, Ae. albopictus, Ae. japonicus, Ae. koreicus, Ae. atropalpus and Ae. triseriatus. Here, we report the results of AIMSurv2020, the firs...

Since 2010 when West Nile virus (WNV) emerged in Greece, it causes seasonal outbreaks of human infections almost every year. During May-October of 2019-2021 a total number of 51,504 Culex pipiens mosquitoes were trapped in all seven regional units of Central Macedonia in northern Greece. They were grouped into 1099 pools and tested for WNV. The vir...

Background In Greece vector borne diseases (VBD) and foremost West Nile virus (WNV) pose an important threat to public health and the tourist industry, the primary sector of contribution to the national economy. The island of Crete, is one of Greece’s major tourist destinations receiving annually over 5 million tourists making regional VBD control...

During the 2020 West Nile virus (WNV) transmission season, Greece was the most affected EU Member State. More than one third of human cases occurred in Serres regional unit in northern Greece, which is characterized by the presence of a major wetland (Kerkini lake and Strimon river). A total of 2809 Culex pipiens mosquitoes collected in Serres were...

This research is an outcome of the R&D activities of Ecodevelopment S.A. (steadily supported by the Hellenic Agricultural Organization—Demeter) towards offering precision farming services to rice growers. Within this framework, a new methodology for topdressing nitrogen prediction was developed based on machine learning. Nitrogen is a key element i...

Surface-water body maps are imperative for effective mosquito larvae control. This study aims to select a method for the automatic and regular mapping of surface-water bodies in rice fields and wetlands using Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar data. Four methods were adapted and developed for automated application: the Otsu valley-emphasis algorit...

Climate change is postulated to alter the distribution and abundance of species which serve as vectors for pathogens and is thus expected to affect the transmission of infectious, vector-borne diseases such as malaria. The ability to project and therefore, to mitigate the risk of potential expansion of infectious diseases requires an understanding...

The objective of this research is to assess the potential of satellite imagery in detecting soil heterogeneity, with a focus on site-specific fertilization in rice. The basic hypothesis is that spectral variation would express soil fertility variations analogously. A 100-ha rice crop, located in the Plain of Thessaloniki, Greece, was selected as th...

West Nile virus is a flavivirus transmitted to humans mainly by mosquito bites. Outbreaks are observed in several European countries, and Greece is one of the most affected countries during the recent years. Thessaly was one of the most affected regions in Greece in 2019. A total of 3,025 Culex spp. mosquitoes collected in Thessaly were grouped int...

In this research, a model for the estimation of antioxidant content in cherry fruits from multispectral imagery acquired from drones was developed, based on machine learning methods. For two consecutive cultivation years, the trees were sampled on different dates and then analysed for their fruits’ radical scavenging activity (DPPH) and Folin–Cioca...

Culex mosquitoes are vectors of several flaviviruses and alphaviruses posing a potential risk to public and veterinary health. In order to gain an insight into the flaviviruses and alphaviruses circulating in the five regional units of Central Macedonia in northern Greece, 17,470 female Culex spp. mosquitoes collected during 2018 were tested for th...

The aim of this study is to develop an integrated approach to soil quality and fertility assessment in high-yielding rice agro-ecosystems threatened due to overexploitation of soil resources by intensive agriculture. The proposed approach is implemented considering representative pilot fields allocated throughout a study area based on the assumptio...

There is now ample evidence that climate change poses major challenges for social and ecological systems. For example, the seasonality, distribution, prevalence and transmission dynamics of vector-borne diseases are strongly related to climate variability, with epidemiological changes reflecting biological responses, that directly impact social com...

Early stages of larval development of seabass and seabream are typically fed with live feeds (nauplii of Artemia). The different disease of microbial etiology with important economic consequences, constitute one of the most significant problems during this first larval period. Therapeutic interventions, implying oral delivery of appropriate antimic...

The objective of this research was to evaluate the correlation between rice yield and soil properties for improving fertilizer recommendations. This was achieved through the application of a new precision agriculture methodology on a large experimental setup of about 115 ha in Chalastra, Greece. The methodology uses multispectral satellite images a...

The objective of this study was to develop a methodology for mapping olive plantations on a sub-tree scale. For this purpose, multispectral imagery of an almost 60-ha plantation in Greece was acquired with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Objects smaller than the tree crown were produced with image segmentation. Three image features were indicated as op...

The poster was presented at the 2nd Conference on the Impact of Environmental Changes on Infectious Diseases, 17-19 May, at Trieste, Italy

Annual entomological surveillance programs aiming to monitor mosquito populations and record presence and absence of mosquito species have been performed in Greece. We report, in this study, new records and expansion of Aedes albopictus in the islands of Lesvos (region of North Aegean), Crete (region of Crete), and the regional units of Rodopi in E...

The determination of time for grape harvest is probably the most important decision for wine making producers, because grapes are not climacteric fruits and if they are harvested before fully ripe their quality is compromised. This is because sugar content, aroma and color compounds increase only before harvest for non-climacteric fruits. The curre...

Climate can affect the geographic and seasonal patterns of vector-borne disease incidence such as West Nile Virus (WNV) infections. We explore the association between climatic factors and the occurrence of West Nile fever (WNF) or West Nile neuro-invasive disease (WNND) in humans in Northern Greece over the years 2010–2014. Time series over a perio...

Verticillium wilt (VW) is a major disease in all the olive producing countries and leads to extensive losses of production and olive trees. There is not chemical treatment available currently for this pathogen and only preventive cultivation measures can be applied. In Greece, the most sensitive cultivars to VW infection are Chondrolia (Chalkidiki)...

Mosquitoes of the genus Aedes are known vectors of pathogenic flaviviruses, and insect-specific flaviviruses (ISFs) have been detected in members of this genus in numerous parts of the world. In order to gain insight into whether Aedes mosquitoes in Greece are infected by flaviviruses, 1173 Aedes spp. mosquitoes collected in 2010 and 2012 were grou...

During 2010-13, West Nile virus (WNV) epidemics occurred in Greece with high numbers of human cases. In parallel, WNV serological surveillance utilizing domestic birds was applied mainly in Central Macedonia, as well as in other areas of the country, and allowed efficient detection of WNV activity during this period. The objective of the study was...

Objectives: The aim of the present paper is to evaluate the economic efficiency of the public control and prevention strategies to tackle the 2010 West Nile Virus (WNV) outbreak in the Region of Central Macedonia, Greece. Efficiency is examined on the basis of the public prevention costs incurred and their potential in justifying the costs arising...

In 2010, a West Nile virus (WNV) epidemic was reported in Central Macedonia, Northern Greece, with 197 neuroinvasive disease (WNND) cases in humans. The following 3 years, WNV spreads to new areas of Greece and human cases reoccurred during the transmission periods. After the initial outbreak, a WNV surveillance system using juvenile backyard chick...

Background: West Nile virus (WNV) emerged in central Macedonia, northern Greece, in 2010. The aim of the study was to test Culex mosquitoes for genetic detection of WNV and other flaviviruses, and to check whether the detection of WNV in mosquitoes was correlated with the occurrence of human WNV cases. Methods: During 2013, 25 780 Culex spp. mos...

In the summer of 2010 an epidemic of West Nile virus (WNV) occurred in Central Macedonia, Greece, with 197 human neuroinvasive disease (WNND) cases. In the following years the virus spread to new areas, with a total of 76 WNND cases in 2011, and 109 WNND cases in 2012 (14 and 12 WNND cases, respectively, in Central Macedonia). We established a surv...

A wide range of arthropod-borne viruses threaten both human and animal health either through their presence in Europe or through risk of introduction. Prominent among these is West Nile virus (WNV), primarily an avian virus, which has caused multiple outbreaks associated with human and equine mortality. Endemic outbreaks of West Nile fever have bee...

Abstract To gain insight into the strain(s) causing human cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection in Greece in 2012, mosquitoes were collected and tested for probable WNV infection. WNV lineage 2 sequences were obtained from two of 14 Culex spp. pools collected in Xanthi Prefecture, and especially in the municipality with the highest incidence in...

Epidemics of West Nile virus (WNV) occurred for two consecutive years in Greece (in 2010 and 2011). A total of 16,116 adult Culex pipiens mosquitoes collected in two peripheries, Central Macedonia and Thessaly, were tested for WNV infection. WNV lineage 2 was detected in 6/296 mosquito pools, three in each year. The H(249)P substitution in the NS3...

Clin Microbiol Infect 2011; 17: 1176–1180 A human outbreak of West Nile virus (WNV) infections occurred in 2010 in central Macedonia, northern Greece. Most cases were observed close to four rivers forming a large Delta, a major Mediterranean wetland. WNV lineage 2 sequences were obtained from two pools of Culex pipiens mosquitoes trapped in sites w...

Greece has a long history of mosquito-born diseases (malaria, dengue fever) and there is scientific evidence that some inhabitants have contacted West Nile virus. Rice fields, extended wetlands close to human settlements (e.g. 15 000 ha of rice fields 15 km from Thessaloniki, the second largest city of Greece with 1 million inhabitants), in combina...

A total of 8500 hectares were treated with larvicides against several species of mosquitoes in an area of 25 000 hectares of agricultural land with 11 500 hectares of Ramsar Convention-protected wetlands in the plain of Nestos (Prefecture of Kavala, northern Greece). Temephos, diflubenzuron and Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (de Barjac)...

SUMMARY 1. Based on data for 14C-primary production and biomass changes in a small and shallow lake (Créteil Lake, France), overall phytoplankton losses were calculated through an annual cycle (November 1985-October 1986). The summer period in 1986 is compared with two other summer periods in 1985 and 1980, these two years corresponding to extreme...

The extensive natural wetlands in the coastal zone of Macedonia and Thrace involve some of the most important mosquito breeding sites in Greece. The method of ecological mapping of mosquito breeding sites, developed for Greece by the company Ecodevelopment S.A., correlates the predominating vegetation types of these wetlands with their potential in...

In the agricultural and touristic areas of the Northern Greece for at least four months in a year people suffer from a huge nuisance from the presence of 90% of the rice cultures and about 70% of the natural wetlands of Greece, the two main mosquito habitats. In 1997 for the first time an Integrated Mosquito Control Program was carried out by Ecode...

In the agricultural and touristic areas of the Northern Greece for at least four months in a year people suffer from a huge nuisance from the presence of 90% of the rice cultures and about 70% of the natural wetlands of Greece, the two main mosquito habitats. In 1997 for the first time an Integrated Mosquito Control Program was carried out by Ecode...

The zooplankton of the River Aliakmon was studied from February 1995 to January 1996 at two sampling stations. Seventy nine different taxa were recorded, including a possible new species (Pleurotrocha n.sp.). The zooplankton community was dominated by rotifers, which made up to 96% of the total abundance. The two stations differed in terms of abund...

In the present study, an attempt was made to estimate the water quality of Aliakmon river using five biotic scores (based on benthic macroinvertebrates), physicochemical variables and multivariate data analyzes. Benthic and chemical samples were obtained from 20 sites, during the low flow season (September, 1995). Benthic macroinvertebrates were co...

A monitoring of selected physicochemical parameters and nutrient concentrations in the river Aliakmon waters where three major hydroelectric dams are present, was performed at bimonthly intervals from February 1995 to January 1996 at two sampling stations. Dissolved oxygen, total suspended solids and pH were significantly higher (P<0.05) at the ups...

The ability of Artemia nauplii to act as carriers of the chemotherapeutics trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole for the treatment of infectious diseases of fish fry was studied. Both drugs accumulate in the nauplii as a function of time and their doses in the enrichment medium, but in different ratios, indicating different accumulation kinetics of the...

Three ways of preserving labelled Cladocerans fed with 14C-Chlorella for 7.5–10 min were tested. Tracer leakage in 4% formalin at room temperature is rapid and extensive (half of the label was found in the animals after 1 hour of preservation). Even when individuals are frozen and sorting is made quickly in a liquid, losses nevertheless occur (subs...

Presents a critique of cell counts, gut fluorescence and the radiotracer method. -from English summary

The main agents of decomposition were colonization by microorganisms, and shredding by invertebrates. The possible indirect biochemical role of dissolved oxygen needs further investigation. Suspended inorganic particles in running waters may have an abrasive impact on leaf material. -from English summary