Dominance of the ON1 Genotype of RSV-A and BA9 Genotype of RSV-B in Respiratory Cases from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) is a main cause of hospital admission for lower respiratory tract infection. In previous studies from Saudi Arabia, higher prevalence of the NA1 genotype in group A was observed from Riyadh and Taif. This study recruited respiratory cases from Jeddah during January to December, 2017. RSV represented 13.4% in the recruited cases with 64% of them belonging to group A and 36% to group B. All group A cases in this study were ON1 type characterized by duplication of 72 nucleotides, 24 amino acids in the C-terminal in the second hypervariable region of the G gene. In addition, for group B all of the cases were clustered under BA9, which had uniquely characterized as duplication of 60 nucleotides in the G protein. Our sequences showed similarity with earlier sequences from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Thailand, South Africa, Spain, the USA and Cyprus. Some amino acid substitutions in the investigated sequences would cause a change in potential O-glycosylation and N-glycosylation profiles from prototype ON1. The predominance of the ON1 and BA9 genotype of RSV-A in Jeddah compared to previous Saudi studies showing predominance of the NA1 genotype for group A. This difference in genotype prevalence could be due to fast spread of the ON1 genotype worldwide or due to the flux of travelers through Jeddah during hajj/umrah compared to Riyadh and Taif. This shift in genotype distribution requires continuous surveillance for genetic characterization of circulating respiratory infections including RSV. These findings may contribute to the understanding of RSV evolution and to the potential development of a vaccine against RSV.

Molecular epidemiological study of the G protein of human respiratory syncytial virus detected in patients with acute respiratory infections in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea

“…The present study revealed that only the ON1 and BA9 genotypes were detected in Gyeonggi Province from 2015 to 2018. Previous studies reported that ON1 and BA9 were the predominant genotypes detected in Bulgaria and Saudi Arabia during the same period 36,37. These data indicate that the HRSV genotype pattern in South Korea was similar to the global trend.HRSV causes acute respiratory infection, which is most prevalent between October and March annually.…”

ON-1 and BA-IX Are the Dominant Sub-Genotypes of Human Orthopneumovirus A&B in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

“…A recent study reported that 97% of HOPV-A sequences ( n = 28) clustered into ON1 genotype in Riyadh, during 2016 [ 31 ]. In a similar fashion, a recent study reported that all HOPV-A strains belonged to the ON-1 sub-genotype in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia [ 25 ]. The ON-1 was originally identified in 2010 in Ontario, Canada.…”

“…A previous study reported that all the HOPV-B sequences ( n = 5) were in BA genotype in Riyadh, during 2016 [ 31 ]. The BA genotype was also reported from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in a recent study [ 25 ]. The BA genotype is prevalent worldwide and has been reported in many countries including Kenya [ 39 ], Japan [ 40 ], Belgium [ 41 ], China [ 42 ], Brazil [ 43 ], Iran [ 44 ], Korea [ 45 ], and India [ 46 ].…”

“…In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, HOPV represented 84/834 (13.4%) in the recruited cases with 64% of them belonging to group A and 36% to group B during January to December, 2017 [ 25 ]. Similarly, HOPV has reported in many countries; in Germany, HOPV was found to be 134/240 (55.4%) with a predominance of type A viruses 110 (82.1%) than type B viruses 24 (17.9%) [ 32 ].…”

“…A similar duplication of 72-nucleotides in the 2nd HVR of the subtype ON1 of HOPV-A was detected in Canada [ 17 ]. In countries such as Malaysia, India, South Korea, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Japan, China, Kenya, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, the ON1 genotype appears to be gaining predominance over the previously predominant NA1 genotype [ 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ].…”