Background: Human parechovirus (HPeV) and enterovirus (EV) infections are widespread and can lead to a broad range of symptoms, from the common cold to severe disease (SD). Because of the lack of Italian data, this 4-year retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the frequency, seasonality and molecular characteristics of EV and HPeV circulating in children younger than 5 years. Methods: A total of 812 samples were collected from children ≤5 years (56.5% males; median age: 20.6 months; interquartile range: 30.1 months) from September 2010 to August 2014. Two real-time RT-PCR assays were used for EV/HPeV and EV-D68 detection. Phylogenetic analysis was performed on the EV-VP1 gene and the HPeV-VP3/VP1 junction. Results: 16.1% and 5.2% of samples were EV- and HPeV-positive, respectively. One sample was EV-D68-positive. The majority (nearly 80%) of EV/HPeV-positive samples was detected in children ≤3 years, during the summer/autumn seasons. The risk of EV infection was higher in children presenting with SD, whereas the risk of infection from HPeV was higher in infants ≤1 year. Most (61.7%) of molecularly characterized EVs belonged to species B, followed by A (29.4%). The majority (66.7%) of characterized HPeVs were type 1, followed by types 3 (20%) and 6 (13.3%). Conclusions: This study shows the significant impact of EV/HPeV circulation in children, particularly among those ≤3 years and during and early autumn, with different pattern of viral strains. The implementation of a national surveillance system could clarify the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of these viruses in the general population.

A 4-year Study on Epidemiologic and Molecular Characteristics of Human Parechoviruses and Enteroviruses Circulating in Children Younger Than 5 Years in Northern Italy / L. Bubba, M. Martinelli, L. Pellegrinelli, V. Primache, E. Tanzi, E. Pariani, S. Binda. - In: THE PEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASE JOURNAL. - ISSN 0891-3668. - 36:1(2017 Jan), pp. 13-19. [10.1097/INF.0000000000001344]

A 4-year Study on Epidemiologic and Molecular Characteristics of Human Parechoviruses and Enteroviruses Circulating in Children Younger Than 5 Years in Northern Italy

L. Bubba
;
M. Martinelli
Secondo
;
L. Pellegrinelli;V. Primache;E. Tanzi;E. Pariani
Penultimo
;
S. Binda
Ultimo
2017

Abstract

Background: Human parechovirus (HPeV) and enterovirus (EV) infections are widespread and can lead to a broad range of symptoms, from the common cold to severe disease (SD). Because of the lack of Italian data, this 4-year retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the frequency, seasonality and molecular characteristics of EV and HPeV circulating in children younger than 5 years. Methods: A total of 812 samples were collected from children ≤5 years (56.5% males; median age: 20.6 months; interquartile range: 30.1 months) from September 2010 to August 2014. Two real-time RT-PCR assays were used for EV/HPeV and EV-D68 detection. Phylogenetic analysis was performed on the EV-VP1 gene and the HPeV-VP3/VP1 junction. Results: 16.1% and 5.2% of samples were EV- and HPeV-positive, respectively. One sample was EV-D68-positive. The majority (nearly 80%) of EV/HPeV-positive samples was detected in children ≤3 years, during the summer/autumn seasons. The risk of EV infection was higher in children presenting with SD, whereas the risk of infection from HPeV was higher in infants ≤1 year. Most (61.7%) of molecularly characterized EVs belonged to species B, followed by A (29.4%). The majority (66.7%) of characterized HPeVs were type 1, followed by types 3 (20%) and 6 (13.3%). Conclusions: This study shows the significant impact of EV/HPeV circulation in children, particularly among those ≤3 years and during and early autumn, with different pattern of viral strains. The implementation of a national surveillance system could clarify the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of these viruses in the general population.
enterovirus; parechovirus; epidemiology; molecular characterization; phylogenetic analysis
Settore MED/42 - Igiene Generale e Applicata
gen-2017
Article (author)
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
00006454-201701000-00007.pdf

accesso riservato

Tipologia: Publisher's version/PDF
Dimensione 472.25 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
472.25 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/466861
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? 7
  • Scopus 19
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 17
social impact