Molecular Typing of Human Adenovirus Infection among Hospitalized Patients with Respiratory Tract Infections in Guangzhou, China

Abstract

Background Human Adenoviruses (HAdVs) cause a wide array of illnesses in all age groups. They particularly cause frequent morbidity among children. In China, human adenovirus types 3, 4, 7, 11, 14, 21, and 55 have caused at least seven outbreaks since 2000. However, limited studies are available regarding the epidemiological patterns and diversity of HAdVs types among hospitalized patients with respiratory tract infections (RTIs). Methods To understand the epidemiology and type distribution of HAdV infections associated with RTIs in China, nasal swab (NS) clinical samples were collected from 4129 patients in a Guangzhou hospital between August 2017 and October 2019. PCR, sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis were performed on these specimens to identify HAdV virus types. Results HAdV was detected in 99 (2.4%) of the 4,129 NS specimens, with the highest HAdV prevalence (6.3%) found in children between the ages of 5 and 10 years. Among HAdV-positive specimens, the most prevalent genotypes identified were HAdV-B3 (55.6%) and HAdV-B7 (25.3%). The most common symptoms in the HAdV-infected patients were fever (100%), cough (80.8%) and rhinorrhea (71.8%). HAdV infections were detected throughout the year with a relatively higher prevalence in summer. Conclusion All ages suffer adenovirus infections, but young children are at greatest risk. These study data demonstrate that at least three species of HAdVs (species B, C, and E) are circulating in Guangzhou City, China. As antiviral therapies and type-specific vaccines become available, such epidemiological data will be useful in guiding therapy and public health interventions.