Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore
Background: Simultaneous acute gastroenteritis (AGE) outbreaks occurred at two military camps. This study details the epidemiological findings, explores possible origins, and discusses preventive measures. Methods: Investigations included attack rate surveys, symptom surveys, hygiene inspections, an...
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sg-ntu-dr.10356-1069112023-02-28T16:59:52Z Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore Ho, Zheng Jie Marc Vithia, Gunalan Ng, Ching Ging Maurer-Stroh, Sebastian Tan, Clive M. Loh, Jimmy Lin, Tzer Pin Raymond Lee, Jian Ming Vernon School of Biological Sciences DRNTU::Science::Biological sciences::Microbiology::Bacteria Background: Simultaneous acute gastroenteritis (AGE) outbreaks occurred at two military camps. This study details the epidemiological findings, explores possible origins, and discusses preventive measures. Methods: Investigations included attack rate surveys, symptom surveys, hygiene inspections, and the testing of water, food, and stool samples. DNA/RNA was extracted from stool samples and amplified via real-time reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR). Partial and full-length capsid nucleotide sequences were obtained, phylogenetic relationships inferred, and homology modelling of antigenic sites performed. Results: The military outbreaks involved 775 persons and were preceded by two AGE outbreaks at restaurants in the local community. The outbreak was longer and larger in the bigger camp (21 days, attack rate 15.0%) than the smaller camp (6 days, attack rate 8.3%). Of 198 stool samples, norovirus GI.2 was detected in 32.5% (larger camp) and 28.6% (smaller camp). These were essentially identical to preceding community outbreaks. Antigenic site homology modelling also showed differences between identified and more common AGE outbreak strains (norovirus GII.4). Conclusion: Differences observed highlight difficulties in controlling person-to-person outbreaks among large groups in close proximity (e.g., military trainees). Distinct differences in antigenic sites may have contributed to increased immunological susceptibility of the soldiers to infection. Published version 2015-03-09T06:29:08Z 2019-12-06T22:20:50Z 2015-03-09T06:29:08Z 2019-12-06T22:20:50Z 2014 2014 Journal Article Ho, Z. J. M., Vithia, G., Ng, C. G., Maurer-Stroh, S., Tan, C. M., Loh, J., et al. (2015). Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore. International Journal of infectious diseases, 31, 23-30. 1201-9712 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/106911 http://hdl.handle.net/10220/25202 10.1016/j.ijid.2014.12.023 en International journal of infectious diseases © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/). application/pdf |
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DRNTU::Science::Biological sciences::Microbiology::Bacteria Ho, Zheng Jie Marc Vithia, Gunalan Ng, Ching Ging Maurer-Stroh, Sebastian Tan, Clive M. Loh, Jimmy Lin, Tzer Pin Raymond Lee, Jian Ming Vernon Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
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Background: Simultaneous acute gastroenteritis (AGE) outbreaks occurred at two military camps. This study details the epidemiological findings, explores possible origins, and discusses preventive measures. Methods: Investigations included attack rate surveys, symptom surveys, hygiene inspections, and the testing of water, food, and stool samples. DNA/RNA was extracted from stool samples and amplified via real-time reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR). Partial and full-length capsid nucleotide sequences were obtained, phylogenetic relationships inferred, and homology modelling of antigenic sites performed. Results: The military outbreaks involved 775 persons and were preceded by two AGE outbreaks at restaurants in the local community. The outbreak was longer and larger in the bigger camp (21 days, attack rate 15.0%) than the smaller camp (6 days, attack rate 8.3%). Of 198 stool samples, norovirus GI.2 was detected in 32.5% (larger camp) and 28.6% (smaller camp). These were essentially identical to preceding community outbreaks. Antigenic site homology modelling also showed differences between identified and more common AGE outbreak strains (norovirus GII.4). Conclusion: Differences observed highlight difficulties in controlling person-to-person outbreaks among large groups in close proximity (e.g., military trainees). Distinct differences in antigenic sites may have contributed to increased immunological susceptibility of the soldiers to infection. |
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School of Biological Sciences |
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School of Biological Sciences Ho, Zheng Jie Marc Vithia, Gunalan Ng, Ching Ging Maurer-Stroh, Sebastian Tan, Clive M. Loh, Jimmy Lin, Tzer Pin Raymond Lee, Jian Ming Vernon |
format |
Article |
author |
Ho, Zheng Jie Marc Vithia, Gunalan Ng, Ching Ging Maurer-Stroh, Sebastian Tan, Clive M. Loh, Jimmy Lin, Tzer Pin Raymond Lee, Jian Ming Vernon |
author_sort |
Ho, Zheng Jie Marc |
title |
Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
title_short |
Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
title_full |
Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
title_fullStr |
Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
title_full_unstemmed |
Emergence of norovirus GI.2 outbreaks in military camps in Singapore |
title_sort |
emergence of norovirus gi.2 outbreaks in military camps in singapore |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/10356/106911 http://hdl.handle.net/10220/25202 |
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1759855463004897280 |