Early identification of common-source foodborne virus outbreaks in Europe.

The importance of foodborne viral infections is increasingly recognized. Food handlers can transmit infection during preparation or serving; fruit and vegetables may be contaminated by fecally contaminated water used for growing or washing. And the globalization of the food industry mean that a contaminated food item may not be limited to national distribution. International outbreaks do occur, but little data are available about the incidence of such events and the food items associated with the highest risks. We developed a combined research and surveillance program for enteric viruses involving 12 laboratories in 9 European countries. This project aims to gain insight into the epidemiology of enteric viruses in Europe and the role of food in transmission by harmonizing (i.e., assessing the comparability of data through studies of molecular detection techniques) and enhancing epidemiologic surveillance. We describe the setup and preliminary results of our system, which uses a Web-accessible central database to track viruses and provides the foundation for an early warning system of foodborne and other common-source outbreaks

Spillover of a hepatitis A outbreak among men who have sex with men (MSM) to the general population, the Netherlands, 2017.

Since 2015, outbreaks of hepatitis A among men who have sex with men (MSM) have been reported worldwide. To examine the impact of these MSM outbreaks in the Netherlands, we combined notification and epidemiological data with sequence analysis. Our results show the hazards of outbreaks within risk-groups spilling over into the largely susceptible general population. One third of the outbreak-related hepatitis A virus genotypes were detected in non-MSM cases

Laboratory-based surveillance in the molecular era: The typened model, a joint data-sharing platform for clinical and public health laboratories

Laboratory-based surveillance, one of the pillars of monitoring infectious disease trends, relies on data produced in clinical and/or public health laboratories. Currently, diagnostic laboratories worldwide submit strains or samples to a relatively small number of reference laboratories for characterisation and typing. However, with the introduction of molecular diagnostic methods and sequencing in most of the larger diagnostic and university hospital centres in high-income countries, the distinction between diagnostic and reference/public health laboratory functions has become less clear-cut. Given these developments, new ways of networking and data sharing are needed. Assuming that clinical and public health laboratories may be able to use the same data for their own purposes when sequence-based testing and typing are used, we explored ways to develop a collaborative approach and a jointly owned database (TYPENED) in the Netherlands. The rationale was that sequence data - whether produced to support clinical care or for surveillance -can be aggregated to meet both needs. Here we describe the development of the TYPENED approach and supporting infrastructure, and the implementation of a pilot laboratory network sharing enterovirus sequences and metadata

Comparison of norovirus genogroup I, II and IV seroprevalence among children in the Netherlands, 1963, 1983 and 2006

Noroviruses are a major cause of acute gastroenteritis worldwide and are a genetically diverse group of viruses. Since 2002, an increasing number of norovirus outbreaks have been reported globally, but it is not clear whether this increase has been caused by a higher awareness or reflects the emergence of new genogroup II genotype 4 (GII.4) variants. The hypothesis that norovirus prevalence has increased post-2002 and is related to the emergence of GII.4 is tested in this study. Sera collected from children aged <5 years of three Dutch cross-sectional population based cohorts in 1963, 1983 and 2006/2007 (n=143, n=130 and n=376, respectively) were tested for specific serum IgG by protein array using antigens to GII.4 and a range of other antigens representing norovirus GI, GII and GIV genotypes. The protein array was validated by paired sera of norovirus infected patients and supernatants of B-cell cultures with single epitope specificity. Evidence for norovirus infection was found to be common among Dutch children in each cohort, but the prevalence towards different genotypes changed over time. At the genogroup level, GI seroprevalence decreased significantly between 1963 and 2006/2007, while a significant increase of GII and, in particular, specific antibodies of the genotype GII.4 was detected in the 2006/2007 cohort. There were no children with only GII.4 antibodies in the 1963 cohort. This study shows that the high GII.4 norovirus incidence in very young children is a recent phenomenon. These findings are of importance for vaccine development and trials that are currently focusing mostly on GII.4 viruses

Viral Membrane Channels: Role and Function in the Virus Life Cycle

10.3390/v7062771Viruses763261-328

Gastroenteritis Caused by Norovirus GGII.4, the Netherlands, 1994–2005

From 1994 through 2005, gastroenteritis outbreaks caused by norovirus generally increased in the Netherlands, with 3 epidemic seasons associated with new GGII.4 strains. Increased percentages of GGII.4 strains during these epidemics, followed by a sharp decrease in their absolute and relative numbers, suggest development of immunity

Emergence of a novel GII.17 norovirus – end of the GII.4 era?

In the winter of 2014/15 a novel GII.P17-GII.17 norovirus strain (GII.17 Kawasaki 2014) emerged, as a major cause of gastroenteritis outbreaks in China and Japan. Since their emergence these novel GII.P17-GII.17 viruses have replaced the previously dominant GII.4 genotype Sydney 2012 variant in some areas in Asia but were only detected in a limited number of cases on other continents. This perspective provides an overview of the available information on GII.17 viruses in order to gain insight in the viral and host characteristics of this norovirus genotype. We further discuss the emergence of this novel GII.P17-GII.17 norovirus in context of current knowledge on the epidemiology of noroviruses. It remains to be seen if the currently dominant norovirus strain GII.4 Sydney 2012 will be replaced in other parts of the world. Nevertheless, the public health community and surveillance systems need to be prepared in case of a potential increase of norovirus activity in the next seasons caused by this novel GII.P17-GII.17 norovirus

The role of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus structural and non-structural proteins in virus pathogenesis

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is an economically devastating viral disease affecting the swine industry worldwide. The etiological agent, PRRS virus (PRRSV), possesses a RNA viral genome with nine open reading frames (ORFs). The ORF1a and ORF1b replicase-associated genes encode the polyproteins pp1a and pp1ab, respectively. The pp1a is processed in nine non-structural proteins (nsps): nsp1a, nsp1b, and nsp2 to nsp8. Proteolytic cleavage of pp1ab generates products nsp9 to nsp12. The proteolytic pp1a cleavage products process and cleave pp1a and pp1ab into nsp products. The nsp9 to nsp12 are involved in virus genome transcription and replication. The 30 end of the viral genome encodes four minor and three major structural proteins. The GP2a, GP3 and GP4 (encoded by ORF2a, 3 and 4), are glycosylated membrane associated minor structural proteins. The fourth minor structural protein, the E protein (encoded by ORF2b), is an unglycosylated membrane associated protein. The viral envelope contains two major structural proteins: a glycosylated major envelope protein GP5 (encoded by ORF5) and an unglycosylated membrane M protein (encoded by ORF6). The third major structural protein is the nucleocapsid N protein (encoded by ORF7). All PRRSV non-structural and structural proteins are essential for virus replication, and PRRSV infectivity is relatively intolerant to subtle changes within the structural proteins. PRRSV virulence is multigenic and resides in both the non-structural and structural viral proteins. This review discusses the molecular characteristics, biological and immunological functions of the PRRSV structural and nsps and their involvement in the virus pathogenesis

The Lantern Vol. 29, No. 1, December 1961

• King Fitzgerald\u27s Court • Deliberate Beyond Conception • Jean • The Dumb Superman • Epilogue to Death • Afternoon in August • Eichmann • A Nose Thumbed • Observation • The Forgetful Evening • Truditur Dies Die • The Deserted Pier • Thoughts on Love • Laughter • A Waste? • Villanelle: Interlude • Lines on a Rhetorical Question • Villanellehttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/lantern/1081/thumbnail.jp