title: Co-circulation of four human coronaviruses (HCoVs) in Queensland children with acute respiratory tract illnesses in 2004.
abstract: Acute respiratory illnesses (ARIs) with unconfirmed infectious aetiologies peak at different times of the year. Molecular diagnostic assays reduce the number of unconfirmed ARIs compared to serology- or culture-based techniques. Screening of 888 inpatient and outpatient respiratory specimens spanning late autumn through to early spring, 2004, identified the presence of a human coronavirus (HCoV) on 74 occasions (8.3% of all specimens and 26.3% of all respiratory virus detections). Prevalence peaked in August (late winter in the southern hemisphere) when they were detected in 21.9% of specimens tested. HCoV-HKU1 and HCoV-OC43 comprised 82.4% of all HCoVs detected. Positive specimens were used to develop novel reverse transcriptase real-time PCRs (RT-rtPCRs) for HCoV detection. An objective clinical severity score was assigned to each positive HCoV patient. Severity scores were similar to those from a random selection of young children who were positive for respiratory syncytial virus at a different time but from the same specimen population. During the cooler months of 2004, sensitive and specific RT-rtPCRs identified the concurrent circulation of all four HCoVs, a quarter of which co-occurred with another virus and most of which were from children under the age of two years.
authors.affiliation: Queensland Paediatric Infectious Diseases Laboratory, Queensland Children's Medical Research Institute, Sir Albert Sakzewski Virus Research Centre, Children's Health Service, University of Queensland, Herston 4029, Australia. ian.mackay@uq.edu.au
authors.forename: Ian M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Mackay
authors.forename: Katherine E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Arden
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Speicher
authors.forename: Nicholas T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: O'Neil
authors.forename: Peter K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: McErlean
authors.forename: Ristan M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Greer
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Nissen
authors.forename: Theo P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Sloots
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019411:Clinical Laboratory Techniques / Q000379:methods; D017934:Coronavirus / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018352:Coronavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015995:Prevalence; D011793:Queensland / Q000453:epidemiology; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D012621:Seasons; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014773:Virology / Q000379:methods; D055815:Young Adult