Publications

characteristics of norovirus gastroenteritis outbreaks in a psychiatric centre.	noroviruses are an important aetiological agent of acute gastroenteritis. they are responsible for large outbreaks of disease in the community, hospitals and long-term-care facilities. the clinical manifestations of norovirus outbreaks in psychiatric units are rarely described. the disease burden and impact highlight the importance of timely notification and investigation of these outbreaks. we analysed the characteristics of four norovirus outbreaks which occurred during a 3-year period in an i ...	2011	20334730
a norovirus outbreak associated with environmental contamination at a hotel.	summaryin december 2006, an outbreak of gastroenteritis occurred involving 372 guests and 72 employees at a hotel after a guest vomited in corridors on the third (f3) and 25th (f25) floors. norovirus with identical genotype was confirmed by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in faecal samples from guest cases and employees. spread of the outbreak on f25 was compared with that on f3. the attack rate in the guests who visited f25 alone (15·0%, 106/708 guests) was significant ...	2011	20429969
norovirus disease associated with excess mortality and use of statins: a retrospective cohort study of an outbreak following a pilgrimage to lourdes.	although norovirus infection is generally known to be a mild disease, there is some evidence for severe outcome. an outbreak in a dutch psychiatric institution, originating from pilgrims returning from lourdes (france), provided an opportunity for performing a retrospective cohort study in order to identify risk factors for norovirus disease and excess mortality. relative risks (rr) including 95% confidence intervals (ci) showed that attending the pilgrimage (rr 2·0, 95% ci 1·4-3·0) and age >70 ...	2011	20492742
chronic norovirus gastroenteritis in a double hematopoietic stem cell and lung transplant recipient.		2011	20804535
can norovirus infection lead to a postinfectious arthritis? report of 2 possible cases.		2011	20806169
molecular epidemiology of norovirus infections in children and adults: sequence analysis of region c indicates genetic diversity of nvgii strains in kolkata, india.	summaryfaecal specimens of diarrhoea cases (n=2495, collected between november 2007 and october 2009) from infectious diseases and beliaghata general (id&bg) hospital, kolkata, india, were screened by rt-pcr using specific primers targeting region c of the capsid gene of noroviruses (novs) to determine the seasonal distribution and clinical characteristics of novs associated with diarrhoea. nov infection was detected in 78 cases, mostly in children aged <2 years. in 22/78 positive cases, the vir ...	2011	20642869
epidemiological and genetic characteristics of norovirus outbreaks in long-term care facilities, 2003-2006.	to identify the epidemiological and genetic characteristics of norovirus (nov) outbreaks and estimate the impact of nov infections in an older population, we analysed epidemiological and laboratory data collected using standardized methods from long-term care facilities (ltcfs) during 2003-2006. faecal specimens were tested for nov by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. nov strains were genotyped by sequencing. of the 234 acute gastroenteritis (age) outbreaks reported, 163 ...	2011	20412611
collaborative validation of a rapid method for efficient virus concentration in bottled water.	enteric viruses, including norovirus (nov) and hepatitis a virus (hav), have emerged as a major cause of waterborne outbreaks worldwide. due to their low infectious doses and low concentrations in water samples, an efficient and rapid virus concentration method is required for routine control. three newly developed methods, a, b and c, for virus concentration in bottled water were compared against the reference method d: (a) convective interaction media (cim) monolithic chromatography; filtratio ...	2011	20724015
detection of human caliciviruses in fecal samples by rt-pcr.	human caliciviruses, noroviruses in particular, are a common cause of gastroenteritis in persons of all age groups. although both antigen detection and serologic methods for diagnosis of infection with these viruses have been described, the best and most common methods used for diagnosis are molecular assays. traditional rt-pcr methods are commonly used for diagnosis, but these require the use of a confirmatory test (such as probe hybridization or sequencing of amplicons). more recently, real-ti ...	2011	21116794
norovirus: a possible cause of pneumatosis intestinalis.	pneumatosis intestinalis (pi) in children is associated with immunosuppression, mucosal disruption from trauma, obstructive pulmonary disease, congenital heart disease, and gastrointestinal infections. our study is the first report of norovirus infection-associated pi.	2011	21150655
economic value of norovirus outbreak control measures in healthcare settings.	although norovirus is a significant cause of nosocomial viral gastroenteritis, the economic value of hospital outbreak containment measures following identification of a norovirus case is currently unknown. we developed computer simulation models to determine the potential cost-savings from the hospital perspective of implementing the following norovirus outbreak control interventions: (i) increased hand hygiene measures, (ii) enhanced disinfection practices, (iii) patient isolation, (iv) use of ...	2011	20731684
hospitalization and deaths for select enteric illnesses and associated sequelae in canada, 2001-2004.	summarythis paper describes morbidity and mortality parameters for campylobacter spp., salmonella spp., enterohaemorrhagic escherichia coli, listeria spp., norovirus infections and their primary associated sequelae [guillain-barré syndrome (gbs), haemolytic uraemic syndrome, reactive arthropathies and reiter's syndrome]. data from a period of 4 years were obtained from three national databases to estimate percentage of reported cases hospitalized, mean annual hospitalization incidence rate, freq ...	2011	20731884
[first detection of human astrovirus in gastroenteritis outbreak in hungary].	human astroviruses are one of the known pathogens of gastroenteritis in infants, children and rarely in elderly. it causes 4.2-7.3% of the sporadic gastroenteritis cases with diarrhea and vomiting in children. the etiological role of astrovirus has not been confirmed yet in outbreaks of gastroenteritis in hungary.	2011	21177230
human bocavirus infection in children with acute gastroenteritis in japan and thailand.	a total of 329 fecal specimens, which had been known to be negative for rotavirus, adenovirus, norovirus, sapovirus, and astrovirus, and which were collected from infants and children with acute gastroenteritis in japan and thailand during 2005-2008 were screened for human bocavirus (hbov). hbov was detected by pcr with a primer pair that amplified the np1 region of its genome and was genotyped by sequencing of the vp1/vp2 region. of the 329 samples tested, 6 (1.8%) were positive for hbov. of th ...	2011	21181924
detection of human parechovirus in stool samples collected from children with acute gastroenteritis in japan during 2007-2008.	of 477 stool specimens, which had been screened for rotavirus, adenovirus, norovirus, sapovirus and astrovirus, collected from infants and children with acute gastroenteritis in pediatric clinics encompassing five localities (sapporo, tokyo, maizuru, osaka, and saga) in japan from july 2007 to june 2008, 247 negative samples (51.7%) were subjected to screening for human parechovirus. human parechovirus (hpev) was detected by rt-pcr using a primer pair to amplify 5'utr region of its genome and wa ...	2011	21181931
understanding gene-environment interactions in a mouse model of crohn's disease.		2011	21183481
foodborne illness acquired in the united states--major pathogens.	estimates of foodborne illness can be used to direct food safety policy and interventions. we used data from active and passive surveillance and other sources to estimate that each year 31 major pathogens acquired in the united states caused 9.4 million episodes of foodborne illness (90% credible interval [cri] 6.6-12.7 million), 55,961 hospitalizations (90% cri 39,534-75,741), and 1,351 deaths (90% cri 712-2,268). most (58%) illnesses were caused by norovirus, followed by nontyphoidal salmonell ...	2011	21192848
viral gastroenteritis in adults.	viral gastroenteritis presents a major public health concern worldwide. it is mostly a disease of young children. however, acquired immunity may wane and symptomatic infection can also occur in adults. furthermore, asymptomatic adults may promote the spread of infections by shedding virus in their stools. this review covers the four most common causes of adult viral gastroenteritis, calicivirirdae (predominantly noroviruses), astroviruses, enteric adenoviruses and rotaviruses focussing on their ...	2011	21210762
evaluation of human enteric viruses in surface water and drinking water resources in southern ghana.	an estimated 884 million people worldwide do not have access to an improved drinking water source, and the microbial quality of these sources is often unknown. in this study, a combined tangential flow, hollow fiber ultrafiltration (uf), and real-time pcr method was applied to large volume (100 l) groundwater (n = 4), surface water (n = 9), and finished (i.e., receiving treatment) drinking water (n = 6) samples for the evaluation of human enteric viruses and bacterial indicators. human enteric v ...	2011	21212196
inactivation of murine norovirus, feline calicivirus and echovirus 12 as surrogates for human norovirus (nov) and coliphage (f+) ms2 by ultraviolet light (254 nm) and the effect of cell association on uv inactivation.	to determine inactivation profiles of three human norovirus (nov) surrogate viruses and coliphage ms2 by ultraviolet (uv) irradiation and the protective effect of cell association on uv inactivation.	2011	21214604
detection of norovirus, sapovirus, and human astrovirus in fecal specimens using a multiplex reverse transcription-pcr with fluorescent dye-labeled primers.	we applied a multiplex reverse transcription-pcr with fluorescent dye-labeled primers (fluorescent multiplex rt-pcr) for noroviruses (nov), sapovirus (sav), and human astrovirus (hastv) to diagnose 71 outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis during july 2007 and may 2010 in hiroshima prefecture. in this assay, the green, red, yellow, and blue fluorescence for nov genogroup i, nov genogroup ii, sav, and hastv, respectively, were indicated on an agarose gel under ultraviolet light. in 61 virus-positive ...	2011	21517947
norovirus and histo-blood group antigens.	norovirus (nov), a member of the family caliciviridae, is a major cause of acute water- and food-borne nonbacterial gastroenteritis and forms antigenically diverse groups of viruses. human novs are divided into at least three genogroups, genogroups i (gi), gii, and giv, which contain at least 15, 18, and 1 genotypes, respectively. except for a few genotypes, all novs bind to histo-blood group antigens (hbgas), namely abh antigens and lewis antigens, in which carbohydrate core structures, (types ...	2011	21519121
age, viral copy number, and immunosuppressive therapy affect the duration of norovirus rna excretion in inpatients diagnosed with norovirus infection.	norovirus is one of the leading causes of acute gastroenteritis worldwide. although it is becoming clear that viral excretion in the stool continues even after the clinical symptoms have disappeared, the factors that determine its duration remain unknown. between 2007 and 2009, all inpatients and medical staff at our hospital who showed symptoms of a new onset of gastroenteritis were asked to submit a sample for norovirus testing by real-time rt-pcr. one of the 273 patients included tested posit ...	2011	21519122
effect of the continuous intake of probiotic-fermented milk containing lactobacillus casei strain shirota on fever in a mass outbreak of norovirus gastroenteritis and the faecal microflora in a health service facility for the aged.	for conducting effective risk management in long-stay elderly people at a health service facility, we performed an open case-controlled study to evaluate the effect of the intake of probiotic-fermented milk containing lactobacillus casei strain shirota (lcs-fermented milk) on norovirus gastroenteritis occurring in the winter season during the intake period. a total of seventy-seven elderly people (mean age 84 years) were enrolled in the study. during a 1-month period, there was no significant di ...	2011	21521545
lipopolysaccharide binding protein, interleukin-6 and c-reactive protein in acute gastrointestinal infections: value as biomarkers to reduce unnecessary antibiotic therapy.	aim: several new biomarkers, such as lipopolysaccharide binding protein (lbp) and interleukin-6 (il-6), have the potential to determine the severity and outcome of infectious diseases. lbp and il-6 serum levels have not been reported in patients with gastrointestinal infections. the aim of this study was to compare established markers of infection with new markers, such as lbp and il-6, in patients with acute gastrointestinal infections method: lbp, c-reactive protein (crp), white blood cell cou ...	2011	21523403
norovirus outbreak associated with undercooked oysters and secondary household transmission.	summaryduring december 2009, over 200 individuals reported gastrointestinal symptoms after dining at a north carolina restaurant. an outbreak investigation included a case-control study of restaurant patrons, a secondary household transmission study, environmental assessment of the restaurant facilities and operations, and laboratory analysis of stool and food samples. illness was primarily associated with consumption of steamed oysters (odds ratio 12, 95% confidence interval 4·8-28) and 20% (8/ ...	2011	21524343
the relationship between health care and nonhealth care norovirus outbreak settings and norovirus genotype in victoria, australia, 2002-2005.	background: there is evidence that norovirus genotype is an important factor in determining norovirus epidemiology, but detailed information is lacking. this report examined this question by studying whether the mix of norovirus genotypes associated with norovirus outbreaks in health care settings was different to that in nonhealth care settings. methods: norovirus outbreaks tested in victoria, australia, 2002-2005 were classified as either health care or nonhealth care. open reading frame 1 nuc ...	2011	21524956
crystal structures of gii.10 and gii.12 norovirus protruding domains in complex with histo-blood group antigens reveal details for a potential site of vulnerability.	noroviruses are the dominant cause of outbreaks of gastroenteritis worldwide, and interactions with human histo-blood group antigens (hbgas) are thought to play a critical role in their entry mechanism. structures of noroviruses from genogroups gi and gii in complex with hbgas, however, reveal different modes of interaction. to gain insight into norovirus recognition of hbgas, we determined crystal structures of norovirus protruding domains from two rarely detected gii genotypes, gii.10 and gii. ...	2011	21525337
pacemaker failure caused by traveller's diarrhoea.	a female patient with a vvi pacemaker suffered from traveller's diarrhoea which she treated with tea and water. after the onset of arrhythmia a pacemaker failure and a sodium concentration of 117mmol/l was found. after substitution of sodium chloride, there was a remission of symptoms, the pacemaker ecg was normal.	2011	21530409
optimization of a real-time rt-pcr assay reveals an increase of genogroup i norovirus in the clinical setting.	although norovirus has been identified as the most common cause of gastroenteritis, the majority of cases have no etiologic agent identified. in this study, we describe the optimization of a real-time rt-pcr assay for the improved detection of genogroup i norovirus in patient specimens based upon sequence data from a collection of representative clinical norovirus sequences. the redesigned assay demonstrated a 64 fold increase in sensitivity, a 2 log decrease in the limit of detection, and an 18 ...	2011	21536071
large gastroenteritis outbreak due to norovirus gii in são paulo, brazil, summer 2010.		2011	21537761
a simple method to recover norovirus from fresh produce with large sample size by using histo-blood group antigen-conjugated to magnetic beads in a recirculating affinity magnetic separation system (rcams).	human norovirus (nov) outbreaks are major food safety concerns. the virus has to be concentrated from food samples in order to be detected. peg precipitation is the most common method to recover the virus. recently, histo-blood group antigens (hbga) have been recognized as receptors for human nov, and have been utilized as an alternative method to concentrate human nov for samples up to 40ml in volume. however, to wash off the virus from contaminated fresh food samples, at least 250ml of wash vo ...	2011	21546111
ozone inactivation of norovirus surrogates on fresh produce.	preharvest contamination of produce by foodborne viruses can occur through a variety of agents, including animal feces/manures, soil, irrigation water, animals, and human handling. problems of contamination are magnified by potential countrywide distribution. postharvest processing of produce can involve spraying, washing, or immersion into water with disinfectants; however, disinfectants, including chlorine, have varying effects on viruses and harmful by-products pose a concern. the use of ozon ...	2011	21549058
investigations on the frequency of norovirus contamination of ready-to-eat food items in istanbul, turkey, by using real-time reverse transcription pcr.	investigation of norovirus (nov) contamination of food items is important because many outbreaks occur after consumption of contaminated shellfish, vegetables, fruits, and water. the frequency of nov contamination in food items has not previously been investigated in turkey. the aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of human nov genogroups (g) i and ii in ready-to-eat tomatoes, parsley, green onion, lettuce, mixed salads, and cracked wheat balls. rna was extracted with the rneasy mi ...	2011	21549059
impact of norovirus/sapovirus-related diarrhea in renal transplant recipients hospitalized for diarrhea.	background.: diarrhea of unspecified cause frequently occurs after renal transplantation and is usually ascribed to mycophenolic acid toxicity. norovirus (nov) and sapovirus (sav) have been sporadically reported to cause chronic diarrhea in immunocompromised patients. methods.: we undertook a retrospective study (2008-2009) to examine the clinical and epidemiologic significance of nov and sav infections in adult renal transplant recipients hospitalized for acute or chronic diarrhea. results.: ni ...	2011	21555974
[comparison of norovirus genotypes by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (genogroup ii)].		2011	21560424
food-specific attribution of selected gastrointestinal illnesses: estimates from a canadian expert elicitation survey.	abstract the study used a structured expert elicitation survey to derive estimates of food-specific attribution for nine illnesses caused by enteric pathogens in canada. it was based on a similar survey conducted in the united states and focused on campylobacter spp., escherichia coli o157:h7, listeria monocytogenes, nontyphoidal salmonella enterica, shigella spp., vibrio spp., yersinia enterocolitica, cryptosporidium parvum, and norwalk-like virus. a snowball approach was used to identify food ...	2011	21561379
molecular epidemiology of norovirus gastroenteritis in children in jiangmen, china, 2005-2007.	human noroviruses (novs) are an important cause of epidemic acute gastroenteritis. their role in sporadic cases, however, is less clear. in this study, we performed a two-year surveillance (september 2005 to august 2007) of nov gastroenteritis in outpatient clinics in a southern city of china, jiangmen city. novs were detected in 115 patients (115/881, 13.1%) with 30 (26.1%) co-infections with rotaviruses. sequence analysis showed that all 115 novs belonged to genogroup ii, with gii.4 being the ...	2011	21562879
development of duplex rt-pcr-elisa for the simultaneous detection of hepatitis a virus and hepatitis e virus.	this study aimed to develop a specific and sensitive duplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (duplex rt-pcr-elisa) for hepatitis a virus (hav) and hepatitis e virus (hev). duplex rt-pcr-elisa could detect and differentiate hav and hev with specific probes. when elisa technique was used to detect probe-bound rt-pcr products, duplex rt-pcr-elisa could detect as little as 0.1ng/μl hav and hev from clinical samples. human norovirus, enterovirus, polio ...	2011	21565222
targeting norovirus infection-multivalent entry inhibitor design based on nmr experiments.	noroviruses attach to their host cells through histo blood group antigens (hbgas), and compounds that interfere with this interaction are likely to be of therapeutic or diagnostic interest. it is shown that nmr binding studies can simultaneously identify and differentiate the site for binding hbga ligands and complementary ligands from a large compound library, thereby facilitating the design of potent heterobifunctional ligands. saturation transfer difference (std) nmr experiments, spin-lock fi ...	2011	21567493
institutional risk factors for norovirus outbreaks in hong kong elderly homes: a retrospective cohort study.	abstract:	2011	21569308
[molecular characteristics of norovirus in 3 outbreak-episodes of gastroenteritis in zhejiang from 2008 to 2009.]	objective: to study the molecular characteristic of norovirus in 3 outbreaks of gastroenteritis in zhejiang province. methods: during january 2008 and december 2009, fecal specimens of patients were collected from 3 outbreaks of acute viral gastroenteritis. noroviruses were detected by real-time rt-pcr. part of the positive samples were randomly selected and detected by rt-pcr. pcr products were sequenced. sequence analysis was undertaken based on partial sequence of rna dependent rna polymerase ...	2011	21569734
norovirus, hepatitis a virus and enterovirus presence in shellfish from high quality harvesting areas in portugal.	this is the first report on the screening of shellfish from portugal for the presence of human enteropathogenic viruses. approximately 2000 shellfish (curbicula fluminea, ruditapes decussatus, tellina crassa, spisula solida, dosinia exoleta, ensis spp., mytilus spp., ostrea edulis and cerastoderma edule), organized in 49 batches, were collected between march 2008 and february 2009. they were tested for norovirus (nov), hepatitis a virus (hav) and enterovirus (ev) by rt-pcr followed by nucleotide ...	2011	21569936
survival of human norovirus surrogates in milk, orange, and pomegranate juice, and juice blends at refrigeration (4 °c).	fresh fruits, juices, and beverages have been implicated in human noroviral and hepatitis a virus outbreaks. the purpose of this study was to determine the survival of human norovirus surrogates (murine norovirus, mnv-1; feline calicivirus, fcv-f9; and bacteriophage ms2) in juices (orange and pomegranate juices), juice blends (pomegranate and orange juice) and milk over 0, 1, 2, 7, 14, and 21 days at refrigeration (4 °c). juices, juice blends, and milk were inoculated with each virus over 21 day ...	2011	21569952
release of infectious human enteric viruses by full-scale wastewater utilities.	in the united states, infectious human enteric viruses are introduced daily into the environment through the discharge of treated water and the digested sludge (biosolids). in this study, a total of 30 wastewater and 6 biosolids samples were analyzed over five months (may-september 2008-2009) from five full-scale wastewater treatment plants (wwtps) in michigan using real-time pcr and cell culture assays. samples were collected from four different locations at each wwtp (influent, pre-disinfectio ...	2011	21570703
gastroenteritis outbreak due to g2p[4] rotavirus and gii norovirus at two correctional facilities in brazil, 2010.		2011	21570903
chronic diarrhea associated with persistent norovirus excretion in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia: report of two cases.	abstract: background: chronic diarrhea in patients treated with immunosuppressive agents or suffering from immunosuppressive disease can represent a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge to the clinician. norovirus infection, a major cause of acute epidemic diarrhea, has been described as a cause of chronic diarrhea in patients who are immunosuppressed, including transplant recipients and the very young. case presentations we describe two patients, a 64 year-old man and a 59 year-old woman, both ...	2011	21586142
frequency and phylogeny of norovirus in diarrheic children in istanbul, turkey.	background: norovirus (nov) is recognised as one of the most common causes of foodborne infections. contaminated shellfish, food, water and hospitals are well documented sources of the virus. objective: nov in diarrheic children has not previously been investigated in istanbul, turkey, hence the aim of this study was to detect and investigate the frequency and phylogeny of human nov genogroups i and ii in children with acute gastroenteritis. study design: 238 stool samples were collected from di ...	2011	21592853
production and characterization of virus-like particles and the p domain protein of gii.4 norovirus.	noroviruses are an important cause of epidemic acute gastroenteritis in humans. in this study the production and characterization of gii.4 norovirus virus-like particles (vlps) in insect cells is reported. furthermore, the expression of corresponding norovirus polyhistidine-tagged p domain protein in escherichia coli is described. the protruding p domain of the norovirus capsid is known to contain determinants for antibody and receptor binding. therefore, p domain proteins were studied as an alt ...	2011	21600929
validation of internal controls for nucleic acid extraction and amplification of enteric viruses in water samples.	inhibitors that reduce viral nucleic acid extraction efficiency and interfere with cdna synthesis and/or polymerase activity affect the molecular detection of viruses in aquatic environments. to overcome the significant problem, we developed a methodology for assessing nucleic acid yields and dna amplification efficiencies for environmental water samples. this involved adding particles of adenovirus type 5 and murine norovirus and newly developed primer sharing controls, which are amplified with ...	2011	21602369
genomic organization and recombination analysis of human norovirus identified from china.	noroviruses (novs) are one of the major causal agents of acute gastroenteritis in both industrial and developing countries including china. recent studies have revealed that nov genome is highly prone to mutation and recombination which may lead to emergence of new strains. in the present study, three full-length genomes of human nov from china were determined and the genomic organization and recombination were analyzed. they had similar genome organization and contained three predicted orfs, th ...	2011	21611752
standardized positive controls for detection of norovirus by reverse transcription pcr.	abstract: background: norovirus is one of the most common causes of nonbacterial gastroenteritis in humans. rapid spread by contaminated food and person-to-person transmission through the fecal-oral route are characteristics of norovirus and result in high morbidity in vulnerable patient populations. therefore, detection of norovirus is a major public health concern. currently, the most common method for detecting and differentiating among noroviruses in clinical and environmental samples is rev ...	2011	21612660
symptomatic and asymptomatic infections of rotavirus, norovirus, and adenovirus among hospitalized children in xi'an, china.	rotavirus (rv), norovirus (nov), and adenovirus (adv) have been reported as the common viral pathogens of acute gastroenteritis in children. to determine the prevalence of rv, nov, and adv infections among hospitalized children with and without symptoms of acute gastroenteritis, fecal specimens, and data on clinical symptoms were collected from 201 children with diarrhea and 53 children without diarrhea admitted to the xi'an children's hospital in xi'an, china between march 2009 and may 2010. rv ...	2011	21618552
grazing intensity is a poor indicator of waterborne escherichia coli o157 activity.	contamination of watercourses with fecal matter represents a significant risk to public health due to the associated risk from human pathogens (e.g. escherichia coli o157, norovirus). in addition, water contamination may also perpetuate the re-infection cycle of human pathogens within domesticated and wild animal populations. while diffuse pollution from agricultural fields has been identified as a major source of these pathogens, the relationship between livestock grazing intensity and subseque ...	2011	21621624
enhanced sanitization of a human norovirus surrogate in fresh vegetables and fruits by a combination of surfactants and sanitizers.	fruits and vegetables are a major vehicle for transmission of foodborne enteric viruses since they are easily contaminated at pre- and post-harvest stages and they undergo little or no processing. however, commonly used sanitizers are relatively ineffective for removing human norovirus surrogates from fresh produce. in this study, we systematically evaluated the effectiveness of surfactants on sanitization of a human norovirus surrogate, murine norovirus 1 (mnv-1), from fresh produce. we showed ...	2011	21622782
enteric pathogens associated with childhood diarrhea in tripoli-libya.	abstract. stool samples from children < 5 years of age with diarrhea (n = 239) were examined for enteric pathogens using a combination of culture, enzyme-immunoassay, and polymerase chain reaction methods. pathogens were detected in 122 (51%) stool samples; single pathogens were detected in 37.2% and co-pathogens in 13.8% of samples. norovirus, rotavirus, and diarrheagenic escherichia coli (dec) were the most frequently detected pathogens (15.5%, 13.4%, and 11.2%, respectively); salmonella, aden ...	2011	21633024
intranasal delivery of norwalk virus-like particles formulated in an in situ gelling, dry powder vaccine.	the development of a vaccine to prevent norovirus infections has been focused on immunization at a mucosal surface, but has been limited by the low immunogenicity of self-assembling norwalk virus-like particles (nv vlps) delivered enterically or at nasal surfaces. nasal immunization, which offers the advantage of ease of immunization, faces obstacles imposed by the normal process of mucociliary clearance, which limits residence time of applied antigens. herein, we describe the use of a dry powde ...	2011	21640778
a duplex real-time rt-pcr assay for the simultaneous genogroup-specific detection of noroviruses in both clinical and environmental specimens.	norovirus (nov) is the major etiological agent causing foodborne and waterborne outbreaks worldwide. we developed a novel duplex real-time quantitative rt-pcr assay designed for the simultaneous detection of and discrimination between nov genogroups gi and gii, by targeting the short junction region between orf1 and orf2, with sensitivity and efficiency comparable to those of each simplex rt-pcr assay. this new duplex assay was evaluated against clinical stool (n = 82) and environmental (groundw ...	2011	21643768
epidemiological and clinical characteristics of pediatric gastroenteritis associated with new viral agents.	a 22-month study (2008-2009) was carried out on 273 patients (average age 40 months), admitted with gastroenteritis to the pediatric unit of l. sacco university hospital in milan, italy. fecal samples were investigated for rotavirus (hrv), norovirus (nov), adenovirus (adv), sapovirus (sav), enterovirus, astrovirus and bocavirus (hbov). a 38.3% incidence of infection was observed for hrv, followed by nov (16.2%), hbov (13.6%), adv (2.6%) and sav (0.6%). clinical evaluation of 109 gastroenteritis ...	2011	21643788
toward a consensus view on the infectious risks associated with land application of sewage sludge.	the science linking processed sewage sludge (biosolids) land application with human health has improved in the last ten years. the goal of this review is to develop a consensus view on the human health impacts associated with land-applying biosolids. pre-existing risk studies are integrated with recent advances in biosolids pathogen exposure science and risk analysis. other than accidental direct ingestion, the highest public risks of infection from land application are associated with airborne ...	2011	21644497
backbone and side-chain (1)h, (15)n, and (13)c resonance assignments of norwalk virus protease.	norovirus protease cleaves the virus-encoded polyprotein into six mature nonstructural proteins, presenting itself as an essential enzyme for the viral replication as well as an attractive target for the antiviral drug development. a deeper understanding of the structural mechanism of the protease-substrates/inhibitors interactions by means of solution nmr methods would facilitate a rational design of the virus protease inhibitor. we here report the backbone and side-chain resonance assignment o ...	2011	21647610
detection of murine norovirus-1 by using tat peptide-delivered molecular beacons.	a tat peptide-delivered molecular beacon was developed and utilized to enumerate murine norovirus 1, a human norovirus (nov) surrogate, in raw 264.7 cells. this allowed the detection of a single infective virus within 6 h, a 12-fold improvement in time required for viral detection and quantification compared to that required by the conventional plaque assay.	2011	21652740
norovirus infections in asymptomatic food handlers in elementary schools without norovirus outbreaks in some regions of incheon, korea.	norovirus (nv) has caused large outbreaks of gastroenteritis in schools. studies of nv epidemiology in schools related to nv outbreaks have been frequently reported. however, reports of that in schools without outbreaks are not found. presently, nv molecular epidemiology surveillance was carried out in asymptomatic food handlers working at nonoutbreak elementary schools in incheon, korea, in march, april and december, 2009. nv prevalence was examined by real-time reverse transcription-pcr (rt-pc ...	2011	21655057
first description of gastroenteritis viruses in lebanese children: a pilot study.	human enteric viruses are important causes of acute gastroenteritis in infants and children. the role of rotaviruses, adenoviruses, human caliciviruses and astroviruses in the development of severe acute gastroenteritis requiring hospitalization of infants and young children in north lebanon was investigated. stool specimens collected between april and may 2010 from 79 lebanese infants and children hospitalized for severe acute gastroenteritis, were screened for enteric viruses by immunoassays a ...	2011	21663874
high prevalence of enteric viruses in untreated individual drinking water sources and surface water in slovenia.	waterborne infections have been shown to be important in outbreaks of gastroenteritis throughout the world. although improved sanitary conditions are being progressively applied, fecal contaminations remain an emerging problem also in developed countries. the aim of our study was to investigate the prevalence of fecal contaminated water sources in slovenia, including surface waters and groundwater sources throughout the country. in total, 152 water samples were investigated, of which 72 samples ...	2011	21665537
molecular characterization of noroviruses and rotaviruses involved in a large outbreak of gastroenteritis in northern italy.	noroviruses and rotaviruses from a gastroenteritis outbreak affecting >300 people near garda lake (northern italy) in 2009 were investigated. characterization of viruses from 40 patient stool samples and 5 environmental samples identified three distinct rotavirus and five norovirus genotypes; two of the latter were detected in both patient and environmental samples.	2011	21666024
calicivirus removal in a membrane bioreactor wastewater treatment plant.	to evaluate membrane bioreactor wastewater treatment virus removal, a study was conducted in southwest france. samples collected from plant influent, an aeration basin, membrane effluent, solid sludge, and effluent biweekly from october 2009 to june 2010 were analyzed for calicivirus (norovirus and sapovirus) by real-time reverse transcription-pcr (rt-pcr) using extraction controls to perform quantification. adenovirus and escherichia coli also were analyzed to compare removal efficiencies. in t ...	2011	21666029
the role played by contaminated surfaces in the transmission of nosocomial pathogens.	studies in the 1970s and 1980s suggested that environmental surface contamination played a negligible role in the endemic transmission of healthcare-associated infections. however, recent studies have demonstrated that several major nosocomial pathogens are shed by patients and contaminate hospital surfaces at concentrations sufficient for transmission, survive for extended periods, persist despite attempts to disinfect or remove them, and can be transferred to the hands of healthcare workers. e ...	2011	21666400
viral infection augments nod1/2 signaling to potentiate lethality associated with secondary bacterial infections.	secondary bacterial infection is a common sequela to┬áviral infection and is associated with increased lethality and morbidity. however, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. we show that the tlr3/mda5 agonist poly i:c or viral infection dramatically augments signaling via the nlrs nod1 and nod2 and enhances the production of proinflammatory cytokines. enhanced nod1 and nod2 signaling by poly i:c required the tlr3/mda5 adaptors trif and ips-1 and was mediated by type i ifns. mechan ...	2011	21669398
food-borne outbreak of norovirus infection in a french military parachuting unit, april 2011.		2011	21813082
outbreak of norovirus infection in a hotel in oslo, norway, january 2011.		2011	21813081
potential role of asymptomatic kitchen food handlers during a food-borne outbreak of norovirus infection, dublin, ireland, march 2009.		2011	21813080
crystallography of a lewis-binding norovirus, elucidation of strain-specificity to the polymorphic human histo-blood group antigens.	noroviruses, an important cause of acute gastroenteritis in humans, recognize the histo-blood group antigens (hbgas) as host susceptible factors in a strain-specific manner. the crystal structures of the hbga-binding interfaces of two a/b/h-binding noroviruses, the prototype norwalk virus (gi.1) and a predominant gii.4 strain (va387), have been elucidated. in this study we determined the crystal structures of the p domain protein of the first lewis-binding norovirus (va207, gii.9) that has a dis ...	2011	21811409
severe norovirus outbreak among soldiers in the field: foodborne followed by person-to-person transmission.		2011	21810756
evaluation of third-generation elisa and a rapid immunochromatographic assay for the detection of norovirus infection in fecal samples from inpatients of a german tertiary care hospital.	the analytical accuracy of the ridascreen norovirus 3rd generation elisa assay and the rapid immunochromatographic ridaquick norovirus assay were determined in comparison to pcr. in a prospective study 410 consecutive samples were collected from inpatients of a tertiary care hospital in germany. all samples were tested with the two antigen detection assays, as well as with three different real-time reverse transcription pcr methods as the reference standard. a sample was considered true-positive ...	2011	21809086
design, synthesis, and evaluation of inhibitors of norwalk virus 3c protease.	the first series of peptidyl aldehyde inhibitors that incorporate in their structure a glutamine surrogate has been designed and synthesized based on the known substrate specificity of norwalk virus 3c protease. the inhibitory activity of the compounds with the protease and with a norovirus cell-based replicon system was investigated. members of this class of compounds exhibited noteworthy activity both in vitro and in a cell-based replicon system.	2011	21802286
specimen collection and confirmation of norovirus outbreaks.	we evaluated data from gastroenteritis outbreaks in oregon to assess sensitivity of stool testing for norovirus and determine number of specimens needed to confirm norovirus as the cause. norovirus can be readily confirmed if 3-6 specimens are collected any time <7 days after onset of diarrhea and for almost that long after symptoms resolve.	2011	21801649
novel gii.12 norovirus strain, united states, 2009-2010.	in october 2009, a novel gii.12 norovirus strain emerged in the united states and caused 16% of all reported norovirus outbreaks during the winter season. sequence analysis demonstrated a recombinant virus with a p2 region that was largely conserved compared with previously sequenced gii.12 strains.	2011	21801639
novel surveillance network for norovirus gastroenteritis outbreaks, united states.	calicinet, the outbreak surveillance network for noroviruses in the united states, was launched in march 2009. as of january 2011, twenty state and local health laboratories had been certified to submit norovirus sequences and epidemiologic outbreak data to calicinet. during the network's first year, 552 outbreaks were submitted to calicinet, of which 78 (14%) were associated with foodborne transmission. a total of 395 (72%) outbreaks were typed as gii.4, of which 298 (75%) belonged to a new var ...	2011	21801614
incidence of acute gastroenteritis and role of norovirus, georgia, usa, 2004-2005.	approximately 179 million cases of acute gastroenteritis (age) occur annually in the united states. however, lack of routine clinical testing for viruses limits understanding of their role among persons seeking medical care. fecal specimens submitted for routine bacterial culture through a health maintenance organization in georgia, usa, were tested with molecular diagnostic assays for norovirus, rotavirus, astrovirus, sapovirus, and adenovirus. incidence was estimated by using national health c ...	2011	21801613
control and prevention of viral gastroenteritis.	diarrheal illness remains 1 of the top 5 causes of death in low-income and middle-income countries, especially for children <5 years of age. introduction of universal childhood vaccination against rotaviruses has greatly reduced the incidence and severity of illness in upper-income and lower-income settings. for adults, norovirus is the leading cause of sporadic cases and outbreaks of diarrheal illness and is responsible for nearly 21 million episodes annually in the united states, of which 5.5 ...	2011	21801608
effective control of an acute gastroenteritis outbreak due to norovirus infection in a hospital ward in athens, greece, april 2011.		2011	21794223
epidemiological survey and analysis on an outbreak of gastroenteritis due to water contamination.	to document the investigation and control of an outbreak of gastroenteritis in city g, south china, and provide a reference for preventing future outbreaks.	2011	21784314
swimmer risk of gastrointestinal illness from exposure to tropical coastal waters impacted by terrestrial dry-weather runoff.	this study used molecular methods to measure concentrations of four enteric viruses (adenovirus, enterovirus, norovirus gi, and norovirus gii) and fecal source tracking markers (human, ruminant, and pig bacteroidales) in land-based runoff from 22 tropical streams on o'ahu, hawai'i. each stream was sampled twice in the morning and afternoon during dry weather. viruses and human bacteroidales were widespread in the streams. watershed septic tank densities were positively associated with higher occ ...	2011	21780808
time-dependent effects of pomegranate juice and pomegranate polyphenols on foodborne viral reduction.	abstract pomegranate juice (pj) and pomegranate polyphenolic extracts (pp) have antiviral effects against hiv-1, influenza, herpes, and poxviruses, and we recently demonstrated their effect against human noroviral surrogates. in the present study, the time-dependent effects of two commercial brands of pj and pp at two concentrations (2 and 4?mg/ml) on the infectivity of foodborne viral surrogates (feline calicivirus fcv-f9, murine norovirus mnv-1, and ms2 bacteriophage) at room temperature for u ...	2011	21777065
evaluation and verification of the seeplex(r) diarrhea-v ace assay for the simultaneous detection of adenovirus, rotavirus and norovirus genogroups i and ii in clinical stool specimens.	acute viral gastroenteritis is an intestinal infection that can be caused by several different viruses. here we describe the evaluation and verification of seeplex® diarrhea-v ace (seeplex® dv), a novel commercial multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rt-pcr) assay that detects 5 diarrheal pathogens including adenovirus, rotavirus, norovirus genogroup i (gi) and gii and astrovirus. we describe a retrospective study of 200 clinical specimens of which 177 were stool specimens ...	2011	21775550
[a novel method for multiplex detection of gastroenteritis-associated viruses].	to develop and optimize a simultaneous detection method of rotavirusa, norovirus gi, gii, sapovirus, human astrovirus, enteric adenoviruses and hbov2 with genomelab gexp analysis system. the sensitivity was verified to be 10(4) copies/microl with plasmids containing the viral targets in triplicate on different days, and no cross-reaction with enterovirus71, human parechovirus and picobirnavirusii was observed. finally, we successfully developed a high throughout, rapid and maneuverable multiplex ...	2011	21774256
food poisoning and diarrhea: small intestine effects.	transmission of foodborne pathogens remains a growing concern despite increasing public awareness and heightened federal measures to control infection. over 76 million cases of acute diarrhea secondary to ingestion of contaminated food occur annually in the united states. fortunately, most are self-limited and resolve without therapy, but up to 6000 deaths occur on an annual basis. mechanisms of infection include consumption of a preformed toxin, formation of toxin following ingestion, and direc ...	2011	21773707
comparison of an elisa and two reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction methods for norovirus detection.	noroviruses are uncultivable; elisa and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rt-pcr) methods are therefore widely used for their detection. sixty-one sporadic, diarrhoeal stool samples from various university hospital wards and from outpatients in szeged, hungary, were examined. three methods were compared: two rt-pcr methods (the argene calici/astrovirus consensus kit and the cepheid norovirus primer and probe set) and one elisa method (the ideia™ norovirus elisa test). sensitivitie ...	2011	21767704
design and application of nucleic acid standards for quantitative detection of enteric viruses by real-time pcr.	synthetic multiple-target rna and dna oligonucleotides were constructed for use as quantification standards for nucleic acid amplification assays for human norovirus genogroup i and ii, hepatitis e virus, murine norovirus, human adenovirus, porcine adenovirus and bovine polyomavirus. this approach overcomes the problems related to the difficulty of obtaining practical quantities of viral rna and dna from these viruses. the quantification capacity of assays using the standards was excellent in ea ...	2011	21765877
excess mortality following community-onset norovirus enteritis in the elderly.	norovirus has been associated with excess deaths. a retrospective study of mortality following norovirus enteritis (nve) was undertaken. all hospitalized adult patients with a stool sample positive for norovirus genogroup ii on polymerase chain reaction, treated at sahlgrenska university hospital, gothenburg, sweden between august 2008 and june 2009, were included as cases (n=598, aged 18-101 years). matched controls without enteritis (n=1196) were selected for comparison. medical records were r ...	2011	21764172
foodborne illness acquired in the united states.	to the editor: the updated estimates of foodborne illness in the united states reported by scallan et al. probably overestimate the occurrence of illness caused by unspecified agents because they did not account for the apparent sensitivity of the population survey to the occurrence of norovirus (1,2). the number of illnesses attributed to unspecified agents was derived from the simultaneous processes of extrapolation and subtraction: extrapolation from the population survey to create a base of ...	2011	21762617
characterization of emerging gii.g/gii.12 noroviruses from a gastroenteritis outbreak in the us in 2010.	norovirus is a major cause of acute gastroenteritis in humans. a norovirus outbreak occurred in ohio in january 2010. stool and saliva samples were obtained from six infected individuals. full length genomes of two representative strains (hs206 and hs210) were characterized. they belonged to gii.12 in the capsid, but gii.g in the rna polymerase region. interestingly, an immunocompetent 2-year-old male shed virus up to 30 days as detected by real-time rt-pcr. histo-blood group antigen (hbga) typi ...	2011	21752978
possible novel nebovirus genotype in cattle, france.	to determine if bovine caliciviruses circulate in france, we studied 456 fecal samples from diarrheic calves. we found a 20% prevalence of genogroup iii noroviruses and a predominance of genotype iii.2. neboviruses, with a prevalence of 7%, were all related to the reference strain bo/nebraska/80/us, except for the strain bo/dijona216/06/fr, which could represent a novel genotype.	2011	21749786
randomized, double-blinded clinical trial for human norovirus inactivation in oysters by high hydrostatic pressure processing.	contamination of oysters with human noroviruses (hunov) constitutes a human health risk and may lead to severe economic losses in the shellfish industry. there is a need to identify a technology that can inactivate hunov in oysters. in this study, we conducted a randomized, double-blinded clinical trial to assess the effect of high hydrostatic pressure processing (hpp) on norwalk virus (hunov genogroup i.1) inactivation in virus-seeded oysters ingested by subjects. forty-four healthy, positive-s ...	2011	21705552
is closure of entire wards necessary to control norovirus outbreaks in hospital? comparing the effectiveness of two infection control strategies.	the standard approach for norovirus control in hospitals in the uk, as outlined by the health protection agency guidance and implemented previously by lancashire teaching hospitals, involves the early closure of affected wards. however, this has a major impact on bed-days lost and cancelled admissions. in 2008, a new strategy was introduced in the study hospital, key elements of which included closure of affected ward bays (rather than wards), installation of bay doors, enhanced cleaning, a rapi ...	2011	21684038
development and clinical validation of multiplex taqman-« assays for rapid diagnosis of viral gastroenteritis.	there is a need to provide rapid, sensitive, and often high throughput detection of pathogens in diagnostic virology. viral gastroenteritis is a serious health issue often leading to hospitalization in the young, the immunocompromised and the elderly. the common causes of viral gastroenteritis include rotavirus, norovirus (genogroups i and ii), astrovirus, and group f adenoviruses (serotypes 40 and 41). this article describes the work-up of two internally controlled multiplex, probe-based pcr as ...	2011	21739458
in vitro whole-virus binding of a norovirus genogroup ii genotype 4 strain to cells of the lamina propria and brunner's glands in the human duodenum.	human norovirus (hnov) remains refractory to propagation in cell culture systems. we believe that knowing the exact cell type that hnov targets will provide important insights into culturing the virus. by the use of an in vitro whole-virus binding assay, the hnov genogroup ii genotype 4 sakai variant was found to bind predominantly to cells of the lamina propria and brunner's glands, but not to those of the luminal epithelial surface, of human duodenum tissue. our findings, together with accumul ...	2011	21680503
the dynamics of norovirus outbreak epidemics: recent insights.	noroviruses are a major cause of gastroenteritis outbreaks worldwide. norovirus outbreaks frequently occur as epidemics which appear to be related to both genetic and environmental factors. this review considers recent progress in understanding these factors. the norovirus genome undergoes continuous change and this appears to be important in the persistence of the virus in the community. studies on the common gii.4 genotype have shown that some norovirus outbreak epidemics involving this genoty ...	2011	21695033
molecular characterization of fecal microbiota in patients with viral diarrhea.	the study provides molecular analyses of fecal microbiota of diarrhea patients infected with four different types of viruses. fecal specimens from 52 patients with viral diarrhea (13 each of adenovirus, norovirus, rotavirus, and astrovirus) and six healthy individuals were collected and etiological viral agent was confirmed by enzyme immunoassay and specific pcr. to assess the changes in microbial diversity in patients with viral diarrhea, dna from stool were extracted and characterized by pcr-d ...	2011	21739252