title: Small round virus-like particles associated with acute gastroenteritis in Japanese children.
abstract: Nine patients with acute gastroenteritis shed small round virus-like particles in the faeces, and seven of them developed serum antibody against those particles as judged by immune electron microscopy. The small round virus-like particle was measured at 29-32 nm in diameter and showed a fine spiky structure on the surface. The buoyant density of the small round virus-like particles was determined to be 1.37-1.40 gm/cm3 in cesium chloride density gradient. The small round virus-like particle differed morphologically from astrovirus and calicivirus, and was antigenically dissimilar to Norwalk agent and W agent. These observations suggest that the small round virus-like particle is one of the new gastroenteritis viruses or may be a new serotype of them. Attempts to cultivate the small round virus-like particles were unsuccesful.
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000956:Antigens, Viral; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007564:Japan; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D014780:Viruses / Q000145:classification* / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D000956:Antigens, Viral