Emergence of a new norovirus GII.4 variant and changes in the historical biennial pattern of norovirus outbreak activity in Alberta, Canada, from 2008 to 2013.

ABSTRACT: The public health impact of the emergence of new norovirus (NoV) strains is uncertain. A biennial pattern of alternating quiescent and epidemic levels of NoV outbreak activity associated with the emergence of new GII.4 variants was observed in Alberta, Canada, between July 2000 and June 2008. In this study, NoV genogroup I (GI) and GII strains isolated from 710 outbreak specimens in Alberta between July 2008 and January 2013 were characterized to update historical data. The seasonality and annual variation in NoV outbreak burden were analyzed over a 10-year period (July 2002 to June 2012). We found that GII.4-2006b had persisted as the predominant variant over three observation periods (July 2006 to June 2009) during which the biennial NoV outbreak pattern continued. The emergence of GII.4

SUBMITTER: Hasing ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3697663 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature