Mello Mateus de Souza, Malta Fábio Correia, Fialho Alexandre Madi, Burlandy Fernanda Marcicano, Fumian Tulio Machado
Laboratório de Virologia Comparada e Ambiental, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro CEP 21045-900, Brazil.
Viruses. 2025 Apr 17;17(4):577. doi: 10.3390/v17040577.
Human enteric adenoviruses (HAdV-F40/41) play a crucial role as causative agents of acute gastroenteritis (AGE), particularly affecting children in low-and middle-income countries. This study investigated the prevalence, genetic diversity, and molecular characteristics of HAdV-F40/41 in AGE cases reported in Brazil from 2021 to 2023, a period after the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 1980 stool samples collected from medically attended AGE patients from nine states were analyzed by TaqMan-based qPCR. Overall, HAdV was detected in 16.6% ( = 328/1980) of cases, with the highest prevalence observed in children under five years of age. The positive HAdV samples were genotyped through partial sequencing of the hexon and/or fiber genes followed by phylogenetic analysis. Enteric HAdVs (HAdV-F40/41) were detected in 3.2% ( = 63/1980) of samples, with HAdV-F41 (44.1%) being the most common genotype. Among the non-enteric types, HAdV-C (29.4%) was the most prevalent, followed by HAdV-B (13.2%), HAdV-A (10.3%), and HAdV-D (2.9%). Phylogenetic analysis of the hexon (HVR1-HVR6) and fiber (Shaft) gene regions identified two major clusters, H-GTC1 and F-GTC2, showing close genetic relationships with global strains. HAdV-F40/41 demonstrated significantly higher viral loads compared to non-enteric HAdVs. These findings highlight the importance of continued surveillance of HAdV-F to better understand its role in AGE cases and support public health strategies, including potential vaccine development.
人肠道腺病毒（HAdV-F40/41）作为急性胃肠炎（AGE）的病原体发挥着关键作用，尤其影响低收入和中等收入国家的儿童。本研究调查了2021年至2023年（新冠疫情后的时期）巴西报告的AGE病例中HAdV-F40/41的流行情况、遗传多样性和分子特征。通过基于TaqMan的定量聚合酶链反应（qPCR）分析了从九个州就诊的AGE患者中收集的1980份粪便样本。总体而言，在16.6%（n = 328/1980）的病例中检测到腺病毒，五岁以下儿童的患病率最高。通过对六邻体和/或纤维基因进行部分测序，然后进行系统发育分析，对阳性腺病毒样本进行基因分型。在3.2%（n = 63/1980）的样本中检测到肠道腺病毒（HAdV-F40/41），其中HAdV-F41（44.1%）是最常见的基因型。在非肠道类型中，HAdV-C（29.4%）最为普遍，其次是HAdV-B（13.2%）、HAdV-A（10.3%）和HAdV-D（2.9%）。对六邻体（HVR1-HVR6）和纤维（杆部）基因区域的系统发育分析确定了两个主要簇，H-GTC1和F-GTC2，它们与全球毒株显示出密切的遗传关系。与非肠道腺病毒相比，HAdV-F40/41的病毒载量明显更高。这些发现凸显了持续监测HAdV-F以更好地了解其在AGE病例中的作用并支持公共卫生策略（包括潜在疫苗开发）的重要性。
