Abstract
The human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63) was first identified in The Netherlands, and its circulation in France has not been investigated. We studied HCoV-NL63 infection in hospitalized children diagnosed with respiratory tract infections. From November 2002 to April 2003, we evaluated 300 respiratory specimens for HCoV-NL63. Of the 300 samples, 28 (9.3%) were positive for HCoV-NL63. The highest prevalence was found in February (18%). The main symptoms were fever (61%), rhinitis (39%), bronchiolitis (39%), digestive problems (33%), otitis (28%), pharyngitis (22%), and conjunctivitis (17%). A fragment of the spike protein gene was sequenced to determine the variety of circulating HCoV-NL63. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that strains with different genetic markers cocirculate in France.
Highlights
The human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63) was first identified in the Netherlands, and its circulation in France has not been investigated
We tested for Human coronaviruses (HCoVs)-NL63 in children with acute respiratory tract infection hospitalized in Caen from November 2002 to April 2003, described symptoms associated with this infection, and examined local strains for the genetic variability
Coronaviruses infect many species of mammals and birds, they possess the largest genome of all RNA viruses (≈30 kb), and they have a high frequency of recombination
Summary
The human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63) was first identified in the Netherlands, and its circulation in France has not been investigated. We studied HCoV-NL63 infection in hospitalized children diagnosed with respiratory tract infections. Human coronaviruses (HCoVs) were first recorded in the late 1960s; they are associated mainly with respiratory tract illness but are involved in enteric and central nervous system diseases. They are represented by 2 prototype strains, HCoV-229E and HCoV-OC43, which belong to antigenic groups 1 and 2, respectively. We tested for HCoV-NL63 in children with acute respiratory tract infection hospitalized in Caen from November 2002 to April 2003, described symptoms associated with this infection, and examined local strains for the genetic variability. We evaluated a multiplex reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay for classical coronaviruses as a tool to test human coronaviruses (except SARS-CoV)
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