Intestinal Intussusception Associated With Adenovirus Infection in Mexican Children

Abstract

Formalin-fixed intestinal tissue specimens from 12 Mexican pediatric patients with intussusception were examined for the presence of adenovirus. Four patients (33%) had detectable adenovirus antigen in epithelial cells as determined by using immunohistochemical analysis. Two of the patients with positive immunohistochemical results had antigens in dendritic and mononuclear inflammatory cells, and 3 patients had positive results for species C adenovirus by in situ hybridization using adenovirus species-specific probes (A-F). A real-time polymerase chain reaction assay specific for species C (nonenteric) adenoviruses was used to confirm immunohistochemical results and to amplify adenovirus DNA for sequencing. A sequence similar to that for adenovirus serotype 1 was found in 1 patient, serotype 2 in another, and serotype 6 in a third; in the fourth patient, the sequence was indeterminate between serotypes 2 and 6. The assays used in this study proved useful for the identification of species C adenoviruses in formalin-fixed specimens from Mexican pediatric patients with intussusception.

Monitoring of adenovirus load in stool by real-time PCR permits early detection of impending invasive infection in patients after allogeneic stem cell transplantation

“…1 These findings suggest that the intestinal tract may be the primary site of AdV reactivation, at least in pediatric transplant recipients. 1,4,[37][38][39][40] It appears intriguing, therefore, to consider the initiation of antiviral therapy at the time of intestinal infection, with the aim to prevent invasive infection by controlling proliferation of the virus at a localized stage. It is important to point out, however, that the presence of AdV in stool specimens is a very common finding during the post-transplant period and most of these patients remain asymptomatic and clear the virus without the use of antiviral treatment.…”

Adenovirus Infections in Immunocompetent and Immunocompromised Patients

“…Moreover, latent HAdV infections were described to occur in intestinal T lymphocytes and in lung epithelial cells, where they seem to play a role in the pathogenesis of obstructive airway disease (104). Other sites of HAdV persistence have also been suggested, but the experimental evidence is limited (105)(106)(107).…”

Latent Species C Adenoviruses in Human Tonsil Tissues

“…Adenovirus infections of very young children can lead to fatal pneumonia (8,33,50). Up to half of cases of intussusception (a bowel obstruction commonly caused by lymphoid hyperplasia) in children under the age of 2 are associated with the common adenoviruses (22,43,48). Adenoviruses are the most common cause of myocarditis in neonates and infants under 1 year of age (5,40).…”