Preventing and controlling epidemics caused by vector-borne viruses are particularly challenging due to their diverse pool of hosts and highly adaptive nature. Many vector-borne viruses belong to the Flavivirus genus, whose members vary greatly in host range and specificity. Members of the Flavivirus genus can be categorized to four main groups: insect-specific viruses that are maintained solely in arthropod populations, mosquito-borne viruses and tick-borne viruses that are transmitted to vertebrate hosts by mosquitoes or ticks via blood feeding, and those with no-known vector. The mosquito-borne group encompasses the yellow fever, dengue, and West Nile viruses, all of which are globally spread and cause severe morbidity in humans. The Flavivirus genus is genetically diverse, and its members are subject to different host-specific and vector-specific selective constraints, which do not always align. Thus, understanding the underlying genetic differences that led to the diversity in host range within this genus is an important aspect in deciphering the mechanisms that drive host compatibility and can aid in the constant arms-race against viral threats. Here, we review the phylogenetic relationships between members of the genus, their infection bottlenecks, and phenotypic and genomic differences. We further discuss methods that utilize these differences for prediction of host shifts in flaviviruses and can contribute to viral surveillance efforts.

由媒介传播的病毒引起的流行病的预防和控制尤其具有挑战性，因为它们具有多样化的宿主和高度适应性的性质。许多媒介传播的病毒属于黄病毒属，其成员在宿主范围和特异性方面差异很大。黄病毒属的成员可分为四大类：仅在节肢动物种群中维持的昆虫特异性病毒、蚊媒病毒和由蚊子或蜱通过吸血传播给脊椎动物宿主的蜱传病毒，以及那些与未知向量。蚊媒传播的病毒包括黄热病、登革热和西尼罗河病毒，所有这些病毒都在全球范围内传播并导致人类严重发病。在黄病毒属具有遗传多样性，其成员受到不同的宿主特异性和载体特异性选择性约束，这些约束并不总是一致的。因此，了解导致该属内宿主范围多样性的潜在遗传差异是破译驱动宿主兼容性的机制的一个重要方面，可以帮助对抗病毒威胁的持续军备竞赛。在这里，我们回顾了该属成员之间的系统发育关系、它们的感染瓶颈以及表型和基因组差异。我们进一步讨论了利用这些差异来预测黄病毒宿主变化的方法，并有助于病毒监测工作。