Serological and genomic characterization of L338, a novel equine group A rotavirus G serotype.

A group A rotavirus designated L338 was isolated from the faeces of a diarrhoeic foal and was compared to 11 standard G serotype strains of group A rotaviruses by cross-neutralization. It was clearly distinct from serotypes G1 to G11 and thus representative of a novel rotavirus G serotype tentatively designated G13. The nucleic acid sequence of the virion protein 7 (VP7) coding region was determined and the deduced amino acid sequence compared to published sequences. Within VP7 regions A and B, L338 was clearly distinct from serotypes G1 to G12 (excluding G7 which has not been sequenced), but region C was very similar to those of G3 and G8. This further questions the significance of region C in determining serotype specificity of at least three distinct rotavirus G serotypes.