Abstract
Group A Rotaviruses (RVA) are the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis in children and a major cause of childhood mortality in low-income countries. RVAs are mostly host-specific, but interspecies transmission and reassortment between human and animal RVAs significantly contribute to their genetic diversity. We investigated the VP7 and VP4 genotypes of RVA isolated from 225 stool specimens collected from Czech patients with gastroenteritis during 2016–2019. The most abundant genotypes were G1P[8] (42.7%), G3P[8] (11.1%), G9P[8] (9.8%), G2P[4] (4.4%), G4P[8] (1.3%), G12P[8] (1.3%), and, surprisingly, G8P[8] (9.3%). Sequence analysis of G8P[8] strains revealed the highest nucleotide similarity of all Czech G8 sequences to the G8P[8] rotavirus strains that were isolated in Vietnam in 2014/2015. The whole-genome backbone of the Czech G8 strains was determined with the use of next-generation sequencing as DS-1-like. Phylogenetic analysis of all segments clustered the Czech isolates with RVA strains that were formerly described in Southeast Asia, which had emerged following genetic reassortment between bovine and human RVAs. This is the first time that bovine–human DS-1-like G8P[8] strains were detected at a high rate in human patients in Central Europe. Whether the emergence of this unusual genotype reflects the establishment of a new RVA strain in the population requires the continuous monitoring of rotavirus epidemiology.
Highlights
Gastrointestinal illnesses due to species A rotavirus (RVA) infections among young children greatly contribute to morbidity and mortality rates in developing countries, especially in Asia and Africa
We report the occurrence of G8P[8] RVA strains that were detected for the first time in the Czech Republic during 2016–2019
Positivity rates were similar in all 3 years of testing
Summary
Gastrointestinal illnesses due to species A rotavirus (RVA) infections among young children greatly contribute to morbidity and mortality rates in developing countries, especially in Asia and Africa. In EU countries, rotavirus gastroenteritis very rarely results in patient death, the economic and social burden of the disease is considerable [1,2]. Since the WHO recommended the universal vaccination of infants against RVA in 2009, the burden of the disease significantly decreased in countries with an RVA vaccination scheme [3]. Still, according to recent estimates, RVA is considered to be responsible for 122,000–216,000 deaths globally per year in children under five years of age [4,5]. RVAs are classified into G and P types according to differences of the nucleotide sequences of genes coding viral proteins 9 and 4 (VP9, VP4), respectively [6].
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