An outbreak of gastroenteritis associated with a novel GII.8 sapovirus variant-transmitted by vomit in Shenzhen, China, 2019

Abstract

Background Human Sapoviruses (SaVs) has been reported as one of the causative agents of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) worldwide. An outbreak of SaVs affected 482 primary school students during spring activities from February 24 to March 11, 2019 in Shenzhen City, China. Our study was aimed at determining the epidemiology of the outbreak, investigating its origins, and making a clear identification of the SaVs genetic diversity. Methods Epidemiological investigation was conducted for this AGE outbreak. Stool samples were collected for laboratory tests of causative agents. Real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) and conventional RT-PCR were used for detecting and genotyping of SaVs. The nearly complete genome of GII.8 SaV strains were amplified and sequenced by using several primer sets designed in this study. Phylogenetic analysis was performed to characterize the genome of GII.8 SaV strains. Results The single factor analysis showed that the students who were less than 1.5 m away from the vomitus in classroom or playgroundwere susceptible (P < 0.05). Seven of 11 fecal samples from patients were positive for GII.8 SaV genotype. In this study, we obtained the genome sequence of a SaV GII.8 strain Hu/SaV/2019008Shenzhen/2019 /CHN (SZ08) and comprehensively analyzed the genetic diversity. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the GII.8 strain SZ08 formed an independent branch and became a novel variant of GII.8 genotype. Strain SZ08 harbored 11 specific amino acid variations compared with cluster A-D in full-length VP1. Conclusions This study identified SaVs as the causative agents for the AGE outbreak. Strain Hu SZ08 was clustered as independent branch and there was no recombination occurred in this strain SZ08. Further, it might become the predominant strain in diarrhea cases in the near future. Constant surveillance is required to monitor the emerging variants which will improve our knowledge of the evolution of SaVs among humans.

Molecular Epidemiology of Human Adenovirus, Astrovirus, and Sapovirus Among Outpatient Children With Acute Diarrhea in Chongqing, China, 2017–2019

“…Notably, SaV outbreaks have been reported in high-income countries, particularly in those possessing a large child population ( 33 , 34 ). Besides, SaV outbreaks occur frequently in China ( 35 , 36 ). Therefore, SaV outbreak surveillance deserve attention in future study.…”

Prevalence and Genetic Characterisation of Human Sapovirus from Children with Diarrhoea in the Rural Areas of Vhembe District, South Africa, 2017–2020

“…Sapovirus is an enteric virus, and is recognized as a public health problem causing acute gastroenteritis in people of all age groups globally, and it also causes outbreaks in semi-closed settings, like orphanages and elderly care facilities [6]. Sapovirus has been associated with persistence vomiting suggested to possibly cause gastroenteritis in humans [7]. The increase of acute gastroenteritis associated with sapovirus (SV) has been reported and recognized as a major public health problem particularly in developing countries [8,9].…”

Metagenomic Detection and Genetic Characterization of Human Sapovirus among Children in Nigeria

“…Phylogenetically, the Nigerian SaVs were related to previously reported SaV reference strains. While GIV sequences in this study formed small sub-clusters independent from previously documented strains from Asia and North America, the GII.8 in the study was 95.4% similar and clustered with a novel variant of the GII.8 genotype, which was associated with an outbreak of SaV among primary school students in Shenzhen city, China, in 2019 [50]. The position and length of the ORFs, VP1 and VP2, of the Nigerian GII.8 strains were identical to those of the Shenzhen strain.…”

“…Interestingly, the GIV sequences in this study clustered independently from previously documented strains from Asia and North America. The GII.8 detected in this study clustered with a novel variant of the GII.8 genotype, which was associated with an outbreak of SaV among primary school students in Shenzhen city, China, in 2019 [50]. However, human SaV sequences detected in this study did not contain any significant recombination breakpoints, according to RDP4 sequence analysis.…”