Dados do Trabalho

Título

High molecular diversity of human adenoviruses in children living in Northwestern Amazon region hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis.

Introdução

Adenoviruses are among the primary viral agents responsible for acute gastroenteritis (AGE) in humans, particularly affecting children under 5 years old. Gastrointestinal infections are often attributed to subgroups A, D, and F, with serotypes 40 and 41 of subgroup F, and serotype 31 of subgroup A, primarily associated with AGE. Understanding the epidemiological capacity of predominant viral genotypes is crucial for guiding therapeutic actions and preventive strategies to reduce dissemination.

Objetivo (s)

This study aimed to determine the molecular prevalence and genotypic distribution of human adenovirus (HAdV) in children up to five years old with and without AGE in the Amazon region.

Material e Métodos

This study obtained approval from the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Roraima (CEP no.: 1,333,480, dated November 23, 2015) and involved a total of 942 children ≤ 5 years old (591 with AGE and 351 without AGE) hospitalized at Santo Antônio Children's Hospital in Roraima. From these, 740 (490 with AGE and 250 without AGE) were collected from 2016 to 2017 and 202 (101 with AGE and 101 without AGE) in 2021. We performed processing, total nucleic acid extraction, and real-time qPCR for all samples. Samples that showed crossing of the threshold line in both replicates up to a Ct value of 35 and displayed a characteristic sigmoid curve were considered HAdV positive. Subsequently, all positive samples were genotyped for the hexon, polymerase, and penton genes of HAdV by Sanger sequencing.

Resultados e Conclusão

The frequency of HAdV was similar between children with and without AGE, with 13% of the samples testing positive, showing no significant difference overall (p = 0.111). However, in 2017, the frequency was notably higher in the group without AGE (22.6% vs. 12.9%, p = 0.001). HAdV-A was predominantly found in the group without AGE, while HAdV-F and C were more prevalent among those with AGE. The study revealed high genotypic diversity, including the first detection of HAdV-D37 in Brazil. There were no significant differences in the distribution of HAdV species between the groups, except for HAdV-A, which was significantly more common in children without AGE (p = 0.007). The data suggest that HAdV-A is more frequently associated with cases without AGE, while other types, such as HAdV-F and C, are more linked to AGE. This emphasizes the importance of understanding the genotypic distribution of HAdV in clinical contexts.  

Palavras Chave

Human adenovirus; Amazon region; Acute gastroenteritis