Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Clinical Microbiology logoLink to Journal of Clinical Microbiology
. 1997 Aug;35(8):2107–2110. doi: 10.1128/jcm.35.8.2107-2110.1997

Detection of group B rotaviruses in fecal samples from diarrheic calves and adult cows and characterization of their VP7 genes.

K O Chang 1, A V Parwani 1, D Smith 1, L J Saif 1
PMCID: PMC229912  PMID: 9230391

Abstract

Groups A, B, and C rotaviruses have been identified in cattle. Group B rotaviruses are associated with sporadic cases of diarrhea in calves and adult cows. From diagnostic submissions to our laboratory, 90 fecal samples from cases of calf diarrhea, 81 fecal samples from cases of adult cow diarrhea (winter dysentery), and 20 fecal samples from case control normal adult cows were tested for group B rotaviruses by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), and reverse transcription (RT)-PCR (targeting 279 bp of the VP7 gene). In addition, 53 fecal samples from diarrheic adult cows were tested for group B rotaviruses by immune electron microscopy (IEM). By RT-PCR, five samples from calves were group B rotavirus positive (5.6%). Fifteen samples from adult cows with diarrhea were group B rotavirus positive (18.5%), and none of the control fecal samples from normal cows were positive for group B rotaviruses. By PAGE, one calf sample (RT-PCR positive) was group B rotavirus positive (short electropherotype), but none of the adult cow samples were positive for group B rotaviruses. By IEM, 5 (9.4%) of the 53 fecal samples from diarrheic adult cows were group B positive (all were also RT-PCR positive). The VP7 genes of three strains (WD653 from an adult cow and the ATI and Mebus calf strains) were sequenced. The VP7 genes from the three bovine strains showed high (over 90%) nucleotide and deduced amino acid homologies, but lower homologies (48 to 61%) were seen between these genes and the genes from rodent (IDIR) and human (ADRV) group B rotaviruses. Although there were some differences of degree, all inoculated gnotobiotic calves (n = 6) showed abnormal feces between 1 and 3 days after inoculation with each of three strains of group B bovine rotaviruses, and group B rotaviruse, were detected in the feces for up to 2 weeks by RT-PCR but for shorter periods by PAGE or IEM.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (602.7 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Allen S., Mitchell J., Jones W., Quinn M. A novel bovine rotavirus electropherotype from outbreaks of neonatal diarrhea in Utah beef herds. J Vet Diagn Invest. 1989 Jan;1(1):74–75. doi: 10.1177/104063878900100121. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Chang K. O., Parwani A. V., Saif L. J. The characterization of VP7 (G type) and VP4 (P type) genes of bovine group A rotaviruses from field samples using RT-PCR and RFLP analysis. Arch Virol. 1996;141(9):1727–1739. doi: 10.1007/BF01718295. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Chasey D., Davies P. Atypical rotaviruses in pigs and cattle. Vet Rec. 1984 Jan 7;114(1):16–17. doi: 10.1136/vr.114.1.16. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Chen G. M., Werner-Eckert R., Tao H., Mackow E. R. Expression of the major inner capsid protein of the group B rotavirus ADRV: primary characterization of genome segment 5. Virology. 1991 Jun;182(2):820–829. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(91)90623-j. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Chinsangaram J., Akita G. Y., Osburn B. I. Detection of bovine group B rotaviruses in feces by polymerase chain reaction. J Vet Diagn Invest. 1994 Jul;6(3):302–307. doi: 10.1177/104063879400600304. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Chinsangaram J., Schore C. E., Guterbock W., Weaver L. D., Osburn B. I. Prevalence of group A and group B rotaviruses in the feces of neonatal dairy calves from California. Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis. 1995 Feb;18(2):93–103. doi: 10.1016/0147-9571(95)98850-H. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Eiden J. J., Allen J. R. Identification of cognate genes among heterologous strains of group B rotavirus. J Virol. 1992 Feb;66(2):1232–1235. doi: 10.1128/jvi.66.2.1232-1235.1992. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Eiden J. J., Firoozmand F., Sato S., Vonderfecht S. L., Yin F. Z., Yolken R. H. Detection of group B rotavirus in fecal specimens by dot hybridization with a cloned cDNA probe. J Clin Microbiol. 1989 Mar;27(3):422–426. doi: 10.1128/jcm.27.3.422-426.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Eiden J. J., Wilde J., Firoozmand F., Yolken R. Detection of animal and human group B rotaviruses in fecal specimens by polymerase chain reaction. J Clin Microbiol. 1991 Mar;29(3):539–543. doi: 10.1128/jcm.29.3.539-543.1991. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Estes M. K., Cohen J. Rotavirus gene structure and function. Microbiol Rev. 1989 Dec;53(4):410–449. doi: 10.1128/mr.53.4.410-449.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Gouvea V., Allen J. R., Glass R. I., Fang Z. Y., Bremont M., Cohen J., McCrae M. A., Saif L. J., Sinarachatanant P., Caul E. O. Detection of group B and C rotaviruses by polymerase chain reaction. J Clin Microbiol. 1991 Mar;29(3):519–523. doi: 10.1128/jcm.29.3.519-523.1991. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Herring A. J., Inglis N. F., Ojeh C. K., Snodgrass D. R., Menzies J. D. Rapid diagnosis of rotavirus infection by direct detection of viral nucleic acid in silver-stained polyacrylamide gels. J Clin Microbiol. 1982 Sep;16(3):473–477. doi: 10.1128/jcm.16.3.473-477.1982. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Lambden P. R., Cooke S. J., Caul E. O., Clarke I. N. Cloning of noncultivatable human rotavirus by single primer amplification. J Virol. 1992 Mar;66(3):1817–1822. doi: 10.1128/jvi.66.3.1817-1822.1992. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Mebus C. A., Rhodes M. B., Underdahl N. R. Neonatal calf diarrhea caused by a virus that induces villous epithelial cell syncytia. Am J Vet Res. 1978 Jul;39(7):1223–1228. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Parwani A. V., Lucchelli A., Saif L. J. Identification of group B rotaviruses with short genome electropherotypes from adult cows with diarrhea. J Clin Microbiol. 1996 May;34(5):1303–1305. doi: 10.1128/jcm.34.5.1303-1305.1996. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Petric M., Mayur K., Vonderfecht S., Eiden J. J. Comparison of group B rotavirus genes 9 and 11. J Gen Virol. 1991 Nov;72(Pt 11):2801–2804. doi: 10.1099/0022-1317-72-11-2801. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Saif L. J., Brock K. V., Redman D. R., Kohler E. M. Winter dysentery in dairy herds: electron microscopic and serological evidence for an association with coronavirus infection. Vet Rec. 1991 May 11;128(19):447–449. doi: 10.1136/vr.128.19.447. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Saif L. J., Jiang B. Nongroup A rotaviruses of humans and animals. Curr Top Microbiol Immunol. 1994;185:339–371. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-78256-5_11. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Sanekata T., Kuwamoto Y., Akamatsu S., Sakon N., Oseto M., Taniguchi K., Nakata S., Estes M. K. Isolation of group B porcine rotavirus in cell culture. J Clin Microbiol. 1996 Mar;34(3):759–761. doi: 10.1128/jcm.34.3.759-761.1996. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Theil K. W., Grooms D. L., McCloskey C. M., Redman D. R. Group B rotavirus associated with an outbreak of neonatal lamb diarrhea. J Vet Diagn Invest. 1995 Jan;7(1):148–150. doi: 10.1177/104063879500700124. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Tsunemitsu H., Saif L. J., Jiang B. M., Shimizu M., Hiro M., Yamaguchi H., Ishiyama T., Hirai T. Isolation, characterization, and serial propagation of a bovine group C rotavirus in a monkey kidney cell line (MA104). J Clin Microbiol. 1991 Nov;29(11):2609–2613. doi: 10.1128/jcm.29.11.2609-2613.1991. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Vonderfecht S. L., Lindsay D. A., Eiden J. J. Detection of rat, porcine, and bovine group B rotavirus in fecal specimens by solid-phase enzyme immunoassay. J Clin Microbiol. 1994 Apr;32(4):1107–1108. doi: 10.1128/jcm.32.4.1107-1108.1994. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Microbiology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES