tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Int J Mol Sci. 2016 Apr 13;17(4). pii: E549. doi: 10.3390/ijms17040549.
[h=1]The Molecular Epidemiology and Evolutionary Dynamics of Influenza B Virus in Two Italian Regions during 2010-2015: The Experience of Sicily and Liguria.[/h] Tramuto F[SUP]1,[/SUP][SUP]2[/SUP], Orsi A[SUP]3,[/SUP][SUP]4[/SUP], Maida CM[SUP]5[/SUP], Costantino C[SUP]6[/SUP], Trucchi C[SUP]7[/SUP], Alicino C[SUP]8[/SUP], Vitale F[SUP]9,[/SUP][SUP]10[/SUP], Ansaldi F[SUP]11,[/SUP][SUP]12[/SUP].
[h=3]Author information[/h]
[h=3]Abstract[/h] Molecular epidemiology of influenza B virus remained poorly studied in Italy, despite representing a major contributor to seasonal epidemics. This study aimed to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships and genetic diversity of the hemagglutinin gene sequences of 197 influenza B strains circulating in both Southern (Sicily) and Northern (Liguria) Italy between 2010 and 2015. Upper respiratory tract specimens of patients displaying symptoms of influenza-like illness were screened by real-time RT-PCR assay for the presence of influenza B virus. PCR-positive influenza B samples were further analyzed by sequencing. Neighbor-joining phylogenetic trees were constructed and the amino-acid alignments were analyzed. Phylogenetic analysis showed clusters in B/Victoria clade 1A/1B (n = 29, 14.7%), and B/Yamagata clades 2 (n = 112, 56.8%) and 3 (n = 56, 28.4%). Both influenza B lineages were found to co-circulate during the study period, although a lineage swap from B/Victoria to B/Yamagata occurred in Italy between January 2011 and January 2013. The most represented amino-acid substitutions were N116K in the 120-loop (83.9% of B/Yamagata clade 3 strains) and I146V in the 150-loop (89.6% of B/Victoria clade 1 strains). D197N in 190-helix was found in almost all viruses collected. Our findings provide further evidence to support the adoption of quadrivalent influenza vaccines in our country.
[h=4]KEYWORDS:[/h] Italy; Liguria; Sicily; influenza B; influenza-like illness; lineages; molecular epidemiology; surveillance; viral evolution
PMID: 27089319 [PubMed - in process] Free full text
[h=1]The Molecular Epidemiology and Evolutionary Dynamics of Influenza B Virus in Two Italian Regions during 2010-2015: The Experience of Sicily and Liguria.[/h] Tramuto F[SUP]1,[/SUP][SUP]2[/SUP], Orsi A[SUP]3,[/SUP][SUP]4[/SUP], Maida CM[SUP]5[/SUP], Costantino C[SUP]6[/SUP], Trucchi C[SUP]7[/SUP], Alicino C[SUP]8[/SUP], Vitale F[SUP]9,[/SUP][SUP]10[/SUP], Ansaldi F[SUP]11,[/SUP][SUP]12[/SUP].
[h=3]Author information[/h]
[h=3]Abstract[/h] Molecular epidemiology of influenza B virus remained poorly studied in Italy, despite representing a major contributor to seasonal epidemics. This study aimed to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships and genetic diversity of the hemagglutinin gene sequences of 197 influenza B strains circulating in both Southern (Sicily) and Northern (Liguria) Italy between 2010 and 2015. Upper respiratory tract specimens of patients displaying symptoms of influenza-like illness were screened by real-time RT-PCR assay for the presence of influenza B virus. PCR-positive influenza B samples were further analyzed by sequencing. Neighbor-joining phylogenetic trees were constructed and the amino-acid alignments were analyzed. Phylogenetic analysis showed clusters in B/Victoria clade 1A/1B (n = 29, 14.7%), and B/Yamagata clades 2 (n = 112, 56.8%) and 3 (n = 56, 28.4%). Both influenza B lineages were found to co-circulate during the study period, although a lineage swap from B/Victoria to B/Yamagata occurred in Italy between January 2011 and January 2013. The most represented amino-acid substitutions were N116K in the 120-loop (83.9% of B/Yamagata clade 3 strains) and I146V in the 150-loop (89.6% of B/Victoria clade 1 strains). D197N in 190-helix was found in almost all viruses collected. Our findings provide further evidence to support the adoption of quadrivalent influenza vaccines in our country.
[h=4]KEYWORDS:[/h] Italy; Liguria; Sicily; influenza B; influenza-like illness; lineages; molecular epidemiology; surveillance; viral evolution
PMID: 27089319 [PubMed - in process] Free full text