Epidemiology Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Epidemiology, including details on twin studies, statistics, environmental and genetic factors.

Molecular epidemiology of rotavirus in Central and Southeastern Europe.

Tcheremenskaia O, Marucci G, De Petris S, Ruggeri FM, Dovecar D, Sternak SL, Matyasova I, Dhimolea MK, Mladenova Z, Fiore L,

Department MIPI, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299, 00161 Rome, Italy.

A surveillance network was implemented by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità of Rome in collaboration with laboratories of virology in Czech Republic, Slovenia, Croatia, Albania, and Bulgaria. About 1,500 rotavirus-positive stool samples were collected from children with severe gastroenteritis admitted to hospitals or outpatient wards between 2004 and 2006. The G and P genotypes were determined by reverse transcription-nested PCR. Significant differences were found in the geographical distributions of rotavirus genotypes between countries participating in the study. The prevalence of "common" G/P combinations, G1P[8], G3P[8], G4P[8], and G2P[4], ranged between 50 and 85%. The G9 genotype, which is emerging worldwide, was identified in 2 to 35% of all samples depending on the country. Unusual combinations, such as G1 or G4 associated with P[4] or G2 with P[8], which may have arisen by reassortment between human strains, were found in samples from 3 to 20% of patients. The uncommon genotypes G8P[8] and G10P[6], which may have an animal origin, were also identified. Double infections with two rotavirus strains were observed in between 1.7 and 14% of cases studied. Our findings might implicate challenges for rotavirus vaccine implementation in a wide geographic area of the Balkans and Central-Eastern Europe and underscore the importance of extensive strain surveillance for success in vaccine development.

Published 6 July 2007 in J Clin Microbiol, 45(7): 2197-204.
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