Open AccessMolecular characterization of group A rotavirus among children aged under 5 years in Tunisia, 2015–2017
Author(s) -
Haifa Bennour,
I. Fodha,
Asma Bouazizi,
Mériam Ben Hamida-Rebaï,
Amira Jerbi,
M. Ben Fredj,
Samia Lakhal,
Ameni Dhiflaoui,
Shada Abdelberi,
Fairouz Abbassi,
N. Boujaafar,
A. Fathallah,
S. Abroug,
Monia Khlifa,
Abdelhalim Trabelsi
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of medical microbiology/journal of medical microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1473-5644
pISSN - 0022-2615
DOI - 10.1099/jmm.0.001031
Subject(s) - rotavirus , genotyping , multiplex polymerase chain reaction , virology , acute gastroenteritis , group a , etiology , vaccination , genotype , medicine , polymerase chain reaction , biology , pediatrics , virus , gene , genetics
The aim of the present study was to report the molecular characterization of human group A rotaviruses (RVAs) circulating in Tunisia. Stool specimens were collected from children under 5 years of age who had been hospitalized or were consulting for gastroenteritis in Tunisian hospitals between 2015 and 2017. All samples were screened by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for the detection of the VP6 gene specific for RVA. RVA-positive samples were further analysed for G/P genotyping by semi-nested multiplex RT-PCR. Among 454 tested samples, 72 (15.8 %) were positive for RVA. G1P[8] was the most prevalent detected strain (41.7%), followed by G9P[8] (32.8%), G2P[4] (7.5%), G12P[8] (7.5%), G1P[6] (3.0%), G2P[8] (1.5%) and G3P[8] (1.5%), with mixed infections in 4.5 % of cases. In the absence of a national anti-rotavirus vaccination strategy, RVAs remain the primary aetiological agent for gastroenteritis in Tunisian children.