Department of Laboratory Medicine, Hallym University Dongtan Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Hwaseong, Korea.
Department of Pediatrics, Hallym University Dongtan Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Hwaseong, Korea.
Ann Lab Med. 2021 Mar 1;41(2):181-189. doi: 10.3343/alm.2021.41.2.181.
Rotaviruses are a major cause of pediatric gastroenteritis. The rotavirus P[6] genotype is the most prevalent genotype isolated from Korean neonates but has rarely been reported in other countries. Histo-blood group antigen (HBGA) is known to play an important role in rotavirus infection. We investigated the relationship between rotavirus genotype and HBGA-Lewis blood type in Korean children and explored the reasons for the predominance of rotavirus P[6] strain in Korean neonates.
Blood and stool samples were collected from 16 rotavirus-infected patients. Rotavirus G (VP7) and P (VP4) genotyping was performed using reverse transcription-PCR and sequencing. Lewis antigen phenotypes (Le/Le) were tested, and HBGA-Lewis genotype was determined by sequencing the secretor () and Lewis () genes. Deduced amino acid sequences and three-dimensional structures of the VP8* portion of the rotavirus VP4 protein were analyzed.
All P[6] rotaviruses were isolated from neonates under one month of age, who were negative or weakly positive for the Le antigen. However, 10 of the 11 non-P[6] rotaviruses were isolated from older children who were Le antigen-positive. The VP8* amino acid sequences differed among P[6], P[4], and P[8] genotypes. Korean P[6] strains showed a unique VP8* sequence with amino acid substitutions, including Y169>L169, which differed from the sequences of P[6] strains from other countries.
The predominance of the rotavirus P[6] genotype in Korean neonates may be related to the interaction between HBGA-Lewis antigen and the VP8* portion of the VP4 protein, and this information will be helpful in future neonatal vaccine development.
轮状病毒是引起小儿肠炎的主要原因。在从韩国新生儿中分离出的轮状病毒中，P[6]基因型最为普遍，但在其他国家鲜有报道。组织血型抗原（HBGA）被认为在轮状病毒感染中起重要作用。我们研究了轮状病毒基因型与韩国儿童 HBGA-刘易斯血型之间的关系，并探讨了韩国新生儿中轮状病毒 P[6]株流行的原因。
收集了 16 例轮状病毒感染患儿的血样和粪便样本。采用逆转录-PCR 和测序方法进行轮状病毒 G（VP7）和 P（VP4）基因分型。检测 Lewis 抗原表型（Le/Le），通过测序分泌型（）和 Lewis（）基因确定 HBGA-Lewis 基因型。分析了轮状病毒 VP4 蛋白 VP8*部分的推定氨基酸序列和三维结构。
所有 P[6]轮状病毒均分离自一个月以下的新生儿，这些新生儿的 Le 抗原阴性或弱阳性。然而，11 株非 P[6]轮状病毒均分离自 Le 抗原阳性的较大儿童。P[6]、P[4]和 P[8]基因型的 VP8氨基酸序列存在差异。韩国 P[6]株显示出独特的 VP8序列，存在氨基酸取代，包括 Y169>L169，与其他国家的 P[6]株序列不同。
韩国新生儿中轮状病毒 P[6]基因型的流行可能与 HBGA-刘易斯抗原和 VP4 蛋白 VP8*部分之间的相互作用有关，这一信息将有助于未来新生儿疫苗的开发。
