Lee Su-Kyung, Choi Seoheui, Shin Seon-Hee, Lee Eun Jin, Hyun Jungwon, Kim Jae-Seok, Kim Hyun Soo
1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Hallym University Dongtan Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, 7, Keunjaebong-gil, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do 18450 South Korea.
2Department of Pediatrics, Hallym University Dongtan Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, 7, Keunjaebong-gil, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do 18450 South Korea.
Gut Pathog. 2018 Jul 3;10:27. doi: 10.1186/s13099-018-0255-8. eCollection 2018.
Rotaviruses are the major causes of pediatric gastroenteritis worldwide. The genotypic distribution of rotavirus strains shows temporal and geographical fluctuations, and knowledge of the molecular epidemiology of rotaviruses is important for the development of vaccines and diagnostic reagents. We investigated VP4 and VP7 capsid genotypes of rotaviruses isolated from 211 stool specimens collected from Korean neonates in a neonatal intensive care unit from September 2017 to March 2018.
Of 211 stool specimens, 15 specimens (7.1%) were rotavirus-positive. Eleven specimens (73.3%) were G8P[6] type and 4 (26.7%) were G4P[6] type. Sequence analysis revealed that all G8 sequences in this study showed the highest nucleotide identity to G8 sequences of G8P[8] rotavirus strains isolated in Vietnam in 2014, and P[6] gene sequences showed the highest nucleotide identity to P[6] sequences of G4P[6] strains detected in Korea in 2012. Only one amino acid difference in VP7 was found in 3 of the 11 G8P[6] strains in this study, but multiple amino acid substitutions in VP7 were detected between these G8P[6] strains and the commonly used vaccine strains.
This study showed that rotavirus G8P[6] strains were firstly detected at high frequency in Korean neonates from September 2017 to March 2018. These new rotavirus G8P[6] strains were estimated to be derived from reassortment events between the G8 of G8P[8] strains in Asian region and the P[6] of G4[6] in Korea. Whether the emergence of this unusual G8P[6] strain reflects continuous prevalence or transient occurrence will require continuous monitoring of rotavirus epidemiology.
轮状病毒是全球小儿肠胃炎的主要病因。轮状病毒株的基因型分布呈现出时间和地理上的波动，了解轮状病毒的分子流行病学对于疫苗和诊断试剂的开发至关重要。我们调查了2017年9月至2018年3月期间从新生儿重症监护病房的韩国新生儿收集的211份粪便标本中分离出的轮状病毒的VP4和VP7衣壳基因型。
在211份粪便标本中，15份标本（7.1%）轮状病毒呈阳性。11份标本（73.3%）为G8P[6]型，4份（26.7%）为G4P[6]型。序列分析显示，本研究中的所有G8序列与2014年在越南分离的G8P[8]轮状病毒株的G8序列具有最高的核苷酸同一性，P[6]基因序列与2012年在韩国检测到的G4P[6]株的P[6]序列具有最高的核苷酸同一性。在本研究的11株G8P[6]菌株中，有3株在VP7中仅发现一个氨基酸差异，但在这些G8P[6]菌株与常用疫苗菌株之间检测到VP7中有多个氨基酸替换。
本研究表明，2017年9月至2018年3月期间在韩国新生儿中首次高频检测到轮状病毒G8P[6]株。这些新的轮状病毒G8P[6]株估计源自亚洲地区G8P[8]株的G8与韩国G4[6]的P[6]之间的重配事件。这种不寻常的G8P[6]株的出现是反映持续流行还是短暂发生，将需要对轮状病毒流行病学进行持续监测。
