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Rotavirus associated gastroenteritis in Thailand
Niwat Maneekarn1, Pattara Khamrin1
1Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, 110 Intawaroros, Sriphoom, Muang, Chiang Mai, 50200 Thailand.
Insights
Group A rotavirus causes severe diarrhea in children globally. This study analyzes rotavirus genotypes in Thailand from 2000-2011, identifying common G-P combinations and evidence of animal-to-human transmission.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Group A rotavirus is a primary cause of severe diarrhea in infants and young children worldwide.
- It is a significant contributor to child mortality, especially in developing nations in Asia and Africa.
- In Thailand, rotavirus infection rates in hospitalized children with acute gastroenteritis range from 28.4% to 44.5%.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the distribution and evolution of rotavirus G and P genotypes in Thailand between 2000 and 2011.
- To identify the most prevalent G-P combinations of human rotavirus strains circulating in Thailand.
- To explore potential interspecies transmission events between animal and human rotaviruses in Thailand.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of rotavirus strains detected in pediatric patients admitted to hospitals in Thailand over a twelve-year period (2000-2011).
- Genotyping of G and P types of human rotavirus strains.
- Comparison of identified human rotavirus strains with known animal rotavirus strains, particularly porcine rotaviruses.
Main Results:
- The predominant G genotypes identified were G1, G2, G3, G4, G9, and G12, with G9 dominant from 2000-2004, followed by G1 and G3.
- P[8] was consistently the most prevalent P genotype throughout the surveillance period.
- The most common G-P combinations were G1P[8], G9P[8], and G2P[4]. Unusual human rotavirus strains with sequences related to animal rotaviruses were identified, suggesting interspecies transmission.
Conclusions:
- Rotavirus gastroenteritis exhibits year-round seasonality in Thailand, peaking from November to April.
- Specific G genotypes have predominated over different periods, indicating shifts in circulating strains.
- Evidence suggests ongoing interspecies transmission of rotaviruses between animals and humans in Thailand, highlighting the need for continued surveillance.
Abstract:
Group A rotavirus is the leading cause of severe diarrhea in infants and young children, and in young animals of many species worldwide. Rotavirus is also the major cause of deaths of children younger than 5 years of age, particularly, in developing countries in Asia and Africa. In Thailand, the burden of rotavirus infection rate in children admitted to the hospitals with acute gastroenteritis ranged from 28.4 to 44.5 %. The seasonality of rotavirus gastroenteritis in Thailand was detected all-year-round with the peak from November to April of the following year. The distributions of G genotypes in pediatric patients during twelve-year surveillances of 2000-2011 were G1, G2, G3, G4, G9, and G12. The G9 was detected as the most predominant genotype in 2000-2004 while G1 and G3 were predominated in 2005-2009 and 2009-2011, respectively. The G4 was detected only in 2001-2003 and G12 only in 2007-2009 but was not detectable in any other years of surveillances. For P genotype, P[8] was the only P genotype that always existed as the most predominant with high prevalence. The G-P combination of human rotavirus strains circulated in Thailand were G1P[8], G2P[4], G2P[8], G3P[3], G3P[8], G3P[9], G3P[10], G3P[19], G9P[8], G12P[6], and G12P[8]. The G1P[8] was the most predominant strain followed by G9P[8], G2P[4], G3P[8], G12P[8], G3P[9], G3P[10], G3P[3], G2P[8], G3P[19], and G12P[6]. The studies of animal rotaviruses were performed mainly on porcine rotaviruses and a wide variety of porcine rotavirus strains have been reported, including G2P[27], G3P[6], G3P[13], G3P[19], G3P[23], G4P[6], G4P[13], G4P[19], G4P[23], G5P[6], G5P[13], G9P[7], G9P[13], and G9P[19]. Several unusual strains of human rotaviruses that carried the genes with nucleotide sequences closely related to those of animal rotaviruses have been described in Chiang Mai, Thailand which provided evidences for interspecies transmission of rotaviruses between humans and animals, and also animals to animals are occurring in nature.
