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J. Clin. Microbiol. doi:10.1128/JCM.00995-08
Copyright (c) 2008, American Society for Microbiology and/or the Listed Authors/Institutions. All Rights Reserved.

Molecular characterisation of equine rotavirus in Ireland

Department of Biological Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Rossa Avenue, Bishopstown, Cork, Ireland; Irish Equine Centre, Johnstown, Naas, County Kildare, Ireland; Department of Animal Health and Wellbeing, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Bari, S.p. per Casamassima Km 3, 70010 Valenzano, Bari, Italy

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: helen.oshea{at}cit.ie.

	Abstract

Group A rotaviruses are important causative agents of severe, acute dehydrating diarrhoea in foals. A total of 86 rotavirus positive faecal samples, collected from diarrhoeic foals from 11 counties in three of the four provinces of Ireland, were obtained from the Irish Equine Centre in Kildare during a 7-year (1999-2005) passive surveillance study and were characterized molecularly to establish the VP7 (G type) and VP4 (P type) antigenic specificities. Fifty-eight samples (67.5%) were found to contain G3 viruses, while in 26 samples (30.2%) the rotaviruses were typed as G14 and in 2 samples (2.3%) there was a mixed infection G3+G14. All the samples save 2, which were untypeable, were characterized as P[12]. Fifty-eight % of the samples were obtained from County Kildare, the centre of the Irish horse industry, where an apparent shift from G3P[12] to G14P[12] was observed in 2003. By sequence analysis of the VP7, the G3 Irish strains were shown to resemble viruses of the G3A sub-type (H2-like) (97.1-100% aa identity), while the G14 Irish strains displayed 93.9-97.1% aa identity to other G14 viruses. In the VP8* fragment of the VP4, the P[12] Irish viruses displayed high conservation (92.3-100% aa) with other equine P[12] viruses. Worldwide, G3P[12] and G14P[12] are the most prevalent equine rotavirus strains and G3P[12] vaccines have been developed for prevention of rotavirus-associated diarrhoea in foals. Investigating the VP7/VP4 diversity of the circulating equine viruses and the dynamics of strain replacement is important to better assess the efficacy of the vaccines.