Distribution of Norovirus GII.P4R among Children with Acute Gastroenteritis in Alnajaf Alashraf City/Iraq

Abstract

Diarrhea is the second commonest infectious cause of death in children less than five years old where Norovirus represented one of the four major viral groups that cause diarrhea. This research aimed to investigate the distribution of Norovirus GII.P4R among children under 5 year’s old suffering from acute gastroenteritis.

A total of 100 stool specimens were collected from patients suffering from gastroenteritis (150 -200 ml of stool specimens) in a sterile wide mouthed universal container during the period from Feb, 2020 to Feb, 2021. Direct RNA extraction from all specimens have been carried out. RT qPCR technique was use for direct detection Norovirus GII.P4R (Nor. GII.P4R).

The results showed that 57(57%) specimens gave positive results for amplification of Norovirus GII.P4. A high percentage of infection reported among male with age group1day ─ 6 months (70.27%) in comparison with female at the same age group (32.43%).