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Coxsackieviruses A10 (CV-A10) and A6 (CV-A6) have been associated with increasingly occurred sporadic hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) cases and outbreak events globally. However, our understanding of epidemiological and genetic characteristics of these new agents remains far from complete. This study was to explore the circulation of CV-A10 and CV-A6 in HFMD and their genetic characteristics in China. A hospital based surveillance was performed in three heavily inflicted regions with HFMD from March 2009 to August 2011. Feces samples were collected from children with clinical diagnosis of HFMD. The detection and genotyping of enteroviruses was performed by real-time PCR and sequencing of 5′UTR/VP1 regions. Phylogenetic analysis and selection pressure were performed based on the VP1 sequences. Logistic regression model was used to identify the effect of predominant enterovirus serotypes in causing severe HFMD. The results showed 92.0% of 1748 feces samples were detected positive for enterovirus, with the most frequently presented serotypes as EV-71 (944, 54.0%) and CV-A16 (451, 25.8%). CV-A10 and CV-A6 were detected as a sole pathogen in 82 (4.7%) and 44 (2.5%) cases, respectively. Infection with CV-A10 and EV-71 were independently associated with high risk of severe HFMD (OR = 2.66, 95% CI: 1.40–5.06; OR = 4.81, 95% CI: 3.07–7.53), when adjusted for age and sex. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that distinct geographic and temporal origins correlated with the gene clusters based on VP1 sequences. An overall ω value of the VP1 was 0.046 for CV-A10 and 0.047 for CV-A6, and no positively selected site was detected in VP1 of both CV-A10 and CV-A6, indicating that purifying selection shaped the evolution of CV-A10 and CV-A6. Our study demonstrates variety of enterovirus genotypes as viral pathogens in causing HFMD in China. CV-A10 and CV-A6 were co-circulating together with EV-71 and CV-A16 in recent years. CV-A10 infection might also be independently associated with severe HFMD.

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Transcriptional regulation of capsule expression is critical for pneumococcal transition from carriage to infection, yet the underlying mechanism remains incompletely understood. Here, we describe the regulation of capsular polysaccharide, one of the most important pneumococcal virulence factor by a GntR family regulator, CpsR. Electrophoretic mobility-shift assays have shown the direct interaction between CpsR and the cps promoter (cpsp), and their interaction could be competitively interfered by glucose. DNase I footprinting assays localized the binding site to a region −146 to −114 base pairs relative to the transcriptional start site of the cps locus in S. pneumoniae D39. We found that CpsR negatively controlled the transcription of the cps locus and hence CPS production, which was confirmed by fine-tuning expression of CpsR in a ΔcpsR complemented strain. Increased expression of CpsR in complemented strain led to a decreased resistance to the whole-blood-mediated killing, suggesting a protective role for CpsR-cpsp interaction in the establishment of invasive infection. Finally, animal experiments showed that CpsR-cpsp interaction was necessary for both pneumococcal colonization and invasive infection. Taken together, our results provide a thorough insight into the regulation of capsule production mediated by CpsR and its important roles in pneumococcal pathogenesis.

BackgroundEnteric viruses are a major cause of diarrhea in children, especially those <5 years old. Identifying the viral agents is critical to the development of effective preventive measures. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of common enteric viruses in children <5 years old presented with diarrhea to the Children’s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University.MethodsFive hundred fecal samples were collected between August and November 2010 from children <5 years of age who presented with acute diarrhea at the Children’s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. All samples were tested for rotaviruses A, B, and C, noroviruses GI and GII, adenovirus, sapovirus, and astrovirus using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), or PCR. Partial sequences of norovirus, sapovirus, adenovirus, and astrovirus were phylogenetically analyzed to determine the genotype.ResultsEnteric viruses were detected in 302 of the 500 children who presented with acute diarrhea (277/477; 58.07%) and persistent diarrhea (5/23; 21.74%). In 277 samples from children with acute diarrhea in whom at least one viral agent was found, rotavirus A was the most frequent virus identified (132 cases; 27.67%), followed by norovirus GII in 130 cases (27.25%), adenovirus in 30 cases (6.29%), sapovirus in 9 cases (1.89%) and astrovirus in one case (0.21%). Twenty-two of the norovirus GII-positive cases were randomly selected for genotyping. GII/4 was the predominant strain, followed by GII/6, GII/2, GII/3, and GII/7. Sapovirus was classified into four genotypes: GI/1 was predominant, followed by GI/2, GII/1, and GIV. The predominant adenovirus was type 41. Mixed infections were found in 25 cases, all of which presented with acute diarrhea (25/477; 5.24%). Viruses were positive in 5/23 (21.74%) cases with persistent diarrhea. Neither rotavirus B, rotavirus C, nor norovirus GI were found in any of the samples.ConclusionsEnteric viruses are a major cause of diarrhea in children <5 years old in Chongqing. Rotavirus A is the most common etiological agent, follow by norovirus.

Background: Seasonal influenza vaccination coverage remains low in most areas of China. Its influencing factors and barriers in various populations receiving influenza vaccinations need to be well understood to promote vaccination. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with residents in 48 communities. Vaccination status in the 2018–2019 influenza season and reasons for or against vaccination were surveyed. The potential factors influencing vaccination uptake were determined using bivariate logistic regression. Results: In total, 1301 of the 11053 respondents received an influenza vaccine during the 2018–2019 season with a coverage rate of 11.8% (95% CI, 11.2–12.4). The vaccine coverage was highest among children (26.6%, 95%CI: 24.8–28.5), followed by adults (8.2%, 95%CI: 7.4–9.0) and elderly people (7.3%, 95%CI: 6.5–8.1) ( p < .001). Those with chronic underlying conditions all had higher vaccine coverage than did those without for different groups ( p < .001). Among the three groups, the most common reason for being unvaccinated was worrying about the side effects (45.0%), believing they were healthy and did not need to get vaccinated (42.2%), and lack of influenza vaccine awareness (48.3%). Low education level and lack of awareness were identified as predictors of low coverage rate. Conclusion: Influenza vaccination coverage is low among different populations in Shanghai. Our study highlights the need for appropriate influenza vaccination strategies and programmes targeting different populations.