Abstract
Molecular characterization of wild-type measles viruses in China during 1995-2004 demonstrated that genotype H1 was endemic and widely distributed throughout the country. H1-associated cases and outbreaks caused a resurgence of measles beginning in 2005. A total of 210,094 measles cases and 101 deaths were reported by National Notifiable Diseases Reporting System (NNDRS) and Chinese Measles Laboratory Network (LabNet) from 2006 to 2007, and the incidences of measles were 6.8/100,000 population and 7.2/100,000 population in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Five hundred and sixty-five wild-type measles viruses were isolated from 24 of 31 provinces in mainland China during 2006 and 2007, and all of the wild type virus isolates belonged to cluster 1 of genotype H1. These results indicated that H1-cluster 1 viruses were the predominant viruses circulating in China from 2006 to 2007. This study contributes to previous efforts to generate critical baseline data about circulating wild-type measles viruses in China that will allow molecular epidemiologic studies to help measure the progress made toward China's goal of measles elimination by 2012.
Highlights
Measles virus (MeV) is a single-stranded, negative-sense RNA virus, belonging to the genus Morbillivirus, family Paramyxoviridae, order Mononegavirales
Epidemiology In 2006 and 2007, the incidence of measles was 6.8/ 100,000 and 7.2/100,000, respectively, with a total of 100,267 and 109,827 cases and 35 and 66 fatalities reported by National Notifiable Diseases Reporting System (NNDRS)
In 2004, measles incidence was > 10/100,000 in 6 of 31 provinces (Xinjiang, Xizang, Yunnan, Guizhou, Gansu and Zhejiang) which were located in the developing areas of China with the exception of Zhejiang province
Summary
Measles virus (MeV) is a single-stranded, negative-sense RNA virus, belonging to the genus Morbillivirus, family Paramyxoviridae, order Mononegavirales. Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease, but is still a major killer of infants worldwide. During 2000-2008, global measles mortality declined by 78%, from an estimated 733,000 deaths in 2000 to 164,000 in 2008 [1,2]. Measles continues to be a leading cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in developing countries and an outbreak threat in the majority of countries, despite the availability of an effective vaccine for over 40 years [3]. Molecular epidemiologic studies can help to measure transmission pathways and to clarify epidemiological links during outbreaks. MeV is considered serologically monotypic genetic heterogeneity has been detected among wild type strains [1,4].
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