Molecular and Epidemiological Characterization of Enteroviruses Isolated in Chungnam, Korea from 2005 to 2006

Abstract

Enteroviruses were identified and characterized from patients with aseptic meningitis and other enterovirusrelated diseases in Chungnam, Korea from 2005 to 2006. Enteroviruses were isolated from 79 of 519 cases (15.2%) in 2005, and 37 of 386 cases (9.6%) in 2006. Based on partial VP1 sequencing, a total of 116 enterovirus isolates were resolved into 13 types. Prevalent among the Chungnam isolates were echovirus 18 and coxsackievirus B5 in 2005, and echoviruses 5 and 25 in 2006. This is the first time echoviruses 5 and 18 have been identified in Korea since enterovirus surveillance began there in 1993. The temporal distribution of enterovirus epidemics in Chungnam showed a remarkable seasonal pattern, with cases occurring during most of the three months of the summer from June to August. The highest rate of enterovirus-positive cases occurred in patients less than 1 year of age. The ratio of male to female enterovirus-positive patients was approximately 1.8:1. Comparison of the VP1 amino acid sequences of the 15 coxsackievirus B5 isolates with reference strains revealed that all Chungnam isolates are substituted at positions 23 (V23I), 19 (S19G), 75 (Y75F), and 95 (N95S). Upon comparing the nine ECV5 isolates with foreign strains, it was found that only the Chungnam isolates, with the exception of Kor06-ECV5-239cn, have P at position 153 and F at position 146. The three ECV9 isolates from 2006 show alterations at amino acids 36, 148, and 154 outside of the BC-loop and at position 84 in the BC-loop, whereas the seven isolates from 2005 and the other ECV9 strains in the database only show the alteration at position 84 (D, I, N, S). The five ECV25 isolates have an S residue at position 134, whereas most of the foreign strains have an N residue.

Accuracy of Diagnostic Methods and Surveillance Sensitivity for Human Enterovirus, South Korea, 1999–2011

“…EV-A (17 serotypes), EV-B (56 serotypes), EV-C (16 serotypes), and EV–D (3 serotypes) species classifications are based on similarities in virus capsid protein (VP) genes ( 4 – 6 ). Among them, 65 serotypes are known to cause infections in humans, including polioviruses, echoviruses (E), coxsackieviruses A (CA) and B (CB), and EV types 68–71 ( 7 , 8 ). …”

Monoclonal neutralizing antibodies against EV71 screened from mice immunized with yeast-produced virus-like particles

“…Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is an infectious disease that has shown outbreaks in the Asia-Pacific region in recent years, especially in mainland China (Ho et al, 1999;Fujimoto et al, 2002;Singh et al, 2002;Baek et al, 2009;Zhang et al, 2009;Chatproedprai et al, 2010). HFMD often occurs in children under the age of five, causing mouth pain, loss of appetite, fever, and sores or ulcers in patients' hands, feet and mouths; it can cause neurological complications in some cases (Lee et al, 2009).…”

Associations between Meteorological Factors and Aseptic Meningitis in Six Metropolitan Provinces of the Republic of Korea

“…Outbreaks of AM occurred approximately every three years since 1990 [5,24,26]. In 1996–2001, the average annual incidence of AM among children under 15 was 3.5 per 1000 [25].…”

“…A variety of EVs have been identified as the predominant causative agents in each summer epidemic of Korea [5,7]. For example, echovirus (9) in 1993, echovirus (serotypes 30 and 6) in 1998, echovirus (13) and CAV (24) in 2002, echovirus (18) and CBV (5) in 2005, and echovirus (serotypes 6 and 30) in 2008 [5,7,26,27]. Previous Korean studies have mostly focused on the descriptive, seroepidemiology, and molecular biology of EVs [25,26,27].…”

“…For example, echovirus (9) in 1993, echovirus (serotypes 30 and 6) in 1998, echovirus (13) and CAV (24) in 2002, echovirus (18) and CBV (5) in 2005, and echovirus (serotypes 6 and 30) in 2008 [5,7,26,27]. Previous Korean studies have mostly focused on the descriptive, seroepidemiology, and molecular biology of EVs [25,26,27]. However, there is a need for in-depth statistical analysis of the relationship between meteorological variables and AM cases in Korea.…”