Abstract
Determination of the distribution of rotavirus genotypes is essential for understanding the epidemiology of this virus responsible for nearly half a million of deaths in patients with gastroenteritis worldwide. In the present study, we aimed to genotype the rotavirus strains isolated from diarrheal stool samples in children under 5 years old. A total of 1297 fecal samples were collected, and rotavirus antigen was detected in 73 of these samples. Antigen-positive samples were transferred to the Public Health Agency of Turkey, Molecular Microbiology Research Laboratory, and were tested for determination of genotypes G and P using semi-nested multiplex polymerase chain reaction method performed with consensus- and genotype-specific primers. Twelve specimens were found to be negative for rotavirus in genotyping method. All the positive-strains were in G1-4, G8-9, P(4), P(8), and P(9) genotypes. The most frequent GP genotype combinations were found to be G9P(8) in 21 strains (34.4%), G2P(4) in 14 strains (23.0%), and G1P(8) in 12 strains (19.7%). We found 10 distinct genotypes amongst a total of 61 strains. Among the strains isolated and genotyped in our study, 90.2% (55/61) and 67.2% (41/61) have already been included in the two existing commercial vaccines. In conclusion, these findings implicate the necessity of development of region-specific vaccines after evaluation of the local genotype distribution. Further studies on the large number of rotavirus strains would contribute to this process.
Highlights
Rotaviruses (RVs) are the major causative agents of acute and severe diarrhea and gastroenteritis in children, in those younger than 5 years
Rotaviruses are non-enveloped RNA viruses belonging to family Reoviridae with a genome consisting of 11 segments of double-stranded RNA surrounded by a triple-layer nucleocapsid
Rotaviruses are further subclassified into genotype G and genotype P, depending on whether their genome contains VP7 or VP4 gene, respectively [1,2,3]
Summary
Rotaviruses (RVs) are the major causative agents of acute and severe diarrhea and gastroenteritis in children, in those younger than 5 years. These microorganisms cause about half a million deaths per year worldwide [1]. Rotaviruses are non-enveloped RNA viruses belonging to family Reoviridae with a genome consisting of 11 segments of double-stranded (ds) RNA surrounded by a triple-layer nucleocapsid. The outer layer includes two structural viral proteins (VPs), denoted as VP4 and VP7. Proteins P and G determine the serotype of the virus. Since they are targets for antibodies, these proteins are important for development of the vaccine. Rotaviruses are further subclassified into genotype G and genotype P, depending on whether their genome contains VP7 or VP4 gene, respectively [1,2,3]
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