Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 12, 2026
Postoperative Ileus Murine Model
Published on: July 12, 2024
Human calicivirus occurrence among outpatients with diarrhea in Beijing, China, between April 2011 and March 2013
Zhiyong Gao1, Xitai Li1, Hanqiu Yan1
1Beijing Key Laboratory of Diagnostic and Traceability Technologies for Food Poisoning, Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Beijing, China.
Insights
Human caliciviruses (HuCVs) are a major cause of diarrhea. A study in Beijing found HuCVs in 17.5% of fecal samples, with norovirus (NoV) GII.4 Sydney_2012 becoming dominant and linked to increased diarrhea cases.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Human caliciviruses (HuCVs), including noroviruses (NoVs) and sapoviruses (SaVs), are significant causes of acute gastroenteritis globally.
- Diarrhea remains a leading cause of illness in both adults and children, necessitating ongoing surveillance of causative agents.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the prevalence and genetic diversity of HuCVs in outpatient diarrhea cases in Beijing, China.
- To identify the predominant norovirus genotypes and track the emergence of specific variants.
Main Methods:
- Collection and analysis of 3,832 fecal specimens from outpatients with diarrhea between April 2011 and March 2013.
- Detection of HuCVs using molecular methods, followed by genotyping of norovirus strains.
- Epidemiological analysis to correlate viral findings with patient visit data.
Main Results:
- Human caliciviruses were detected in 17.5% (669/3,832) of specimens.
- Norovirus (NoV) was the predominant HuCV (91.6%), primarily GII (90.1%), with GII.4 being the most common genotype (70.4%).
- The GII.4 Sydney_2012 variant emerged and replaced GII.4 Den Haag_2006b, coinciding with a 44.6% increase in diarrhea cases during late 2012.
Conclusions:
- Norovirus, particularly GII.4 variants, plays a substantial role in adult and childhood diarrhea in Beijing.
- The emergence of the GII.4 Sydney_2012 strain was associated with a significant rise in diarrhea incidence, highlighting the importance of continuous molecular surveillance.
Abstract:
Human caliciviruses (HuCVs), including noroviruses (NoVs) and sapoviruses (SaVs), are the most common cause of diarrhea in adults and the second most common cause of diarrhea in children. Between April 2011 and March 2013, 3,832 fecal specimens were collected from outpatients with diarrhea from 17 hospitals in Beijing, China, and 669 specimens (17.5%) were positive for HuCV. Of the 287 HuCV-positive specimens, 263 (91.6%) were identified to be NoV, 23 (8.0%) were identified to be SaV, and one (0.3%) was identified to be a mixed infection of NoV and SaV. Of the 263 NoV-positive specimens, 237 (90.1%) were NoV GII, 21 (8.0%) were NoV GI, and 5 (1.9%) were a combination of NoV GI and GII. Among the 216 sequenced GII-positive samples, GII.4 was the most common genotype (70.4%, 152/216), followed by GII.13 (9.3%, 20/216). GII.4 Sydney_2012 was first detected in August 2012 and replaced GII.4 Den Haag_2006b as the predominant variant between September 2012 and March 2013. With the emergence of the GII.4 Sydney_2012 variant, 44.6% more patients with diarrhea visited the 17 hospitals (9,931 cases) than in the previous year (6,866 cases) between October and December 2012.
