Incidence and prevalence of human group C rotavirus infections in Argentina

Abstract

The incidence of human group C rotavirus infections among children and adults in Buenos Aires was evaluated by enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) based on recombinant group C VP6 protein (Cowden strain). A total of 976 stool samples taken from patients (ages 6 months to 15 years) with acute diarrhea were tested for the presence of group C rotavirus. Among these, only 10 (1.02%) were group C rotavirus positive by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) confirmed by absorption with group C VP6 antibodies and by RT-PCR for both VP6 and VP7 genes. The average age (5.86 years) was significantly superior to that in group A-infected patients (1.63 years). Previous exposure to this virus was assessed by detecting specific IgG in sera taken from healthy individuals grouped by age. Of 844 sera tested, 425 (50.3%) were group C IgG positive by ELISA, confirmed by Western blot analysis. The rates of IgG positivity for group A and C rotaviruses during the first years of life indicated that infections with group C are frequent in older children (3-5 years), whereas group A infections are prevalent in infants and young children (6-18 months). This study shows that group C rotavirus infections in Argentine children occur later in life than group A and are relatively common in spite of the low detection rate of this virus.

Viral gastroenteritis and diversity of rotavirus strains in Colombian children: a systematic review

“…The average detection rates of CV (10.4%), AstV (2.7%) and AdV 40/41 (1.4%) were comparable to those reported (14.0%, 3.0 % and 6.0%) in industrialized and non-industrialized countries [28 -33]. Otherwise, the RVC detection rate reported in Facatativá, was higher than those reported in Argentina (1.02 %) [34] and Japan (6.8 %) [35].…”

Detection and Quantification of Group C Rotaviruses in Communal Sewage

“…An alternative hypothesis to explain the presence of animal-like strains in the communal sewage is that they might infect humans. The usually low detection rate of group C rotaviruses in childhood gastroenteritis (around 1% for children less than 5 years of age [3,5,41]) contrasts with reports of the relative abundance of antibodies against the virus in the same age group, as nearly 20% to 30% of children develop an antibody response to group C rotavirus by 5 years of age (14,21,37). An apparent increase in the serological prevalence of group C rotavirus has been observed among people of rural communities, an increase which has been linked to enhanced exposure to animals (13).…”

Incidence of Group C Human Rotavirus in Central Australia and Sequence Variation of the VP7 and VP4 Genes

“…In other countries serological surveys have suggested that group C rotavirus infections are far more common than actual virus identification may have indicated (2,7,13,19). These surveys, however, also included adults, among whom there was usually a higher level of group C rotavirus seropositivity than among infants and young children.…”