• Detection of Aichi Virus as a New Emerging Picornavirus in Environmental Water Samples
  • Zakieh Azhdar,1 Mostafa Ghaderi,2,* Seyed Dawood Mousavi-Nasab,3
    1. Department of Microbiology, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran
    2. Department of Microbiology, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran
    3. Department of Research and Development, Production and Research Complex, Pasteur Institute of Iran


  • Introduction: Aichi virus (AiV) is an emerging virus, which belongs to Kobuvirus genus of the Picornaviridae family. AiV was recently determined as an etiologic agent of gastroenteritis in susceptible humans. After shedding of virus particles from affected people, Aichi virus particles can contaminate water sources. Then, infection with this virus occurs in humans by the fecal-oral route after exposure with contaminated waters. Thus far, some research around the world demonstrated that different kinds of water sources including river water, ground water and treated or untreated sewage water have contamination with Aichi viruses. Molecular detection of Aichi virus mostly depended on reverse transcription-PCR methods, which targeted 3CD junction region of the virus genome.
  • Methods: The present study aim to assess the molecular detection of Aichi viruses in treated and untreated sewage water and river water specimens by the development of reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) assay for all AiV genotypes. The sample volume for river water and sewage water were 5 L and 1 L, respectively. After viral RNA extraction, the Real-time PCR was performed to amplify the 5'UTR sequence of Aichi virus genome and viral load was assessed.
  • Results: Out of 50 samples tested (consisting of 28 river water samples and 22 sewage water samples), the Aichi virus genomic RNA was identified in 15/28 (~50%) river water samples and in 14/22 (~70%) sewage samples. The maximum viral load was 5.9 × 106 copies/l in river water sample in September and the lower viral load was 3.4 × 102 copies/l related to river water taken in December.
  • Conclusion: Our results, for the first time, indicated that Aichi viruses have been circulating in Iran. The viral prevalence of Aichi virus in each of the three sets of tested samples was within moderate to high in range.
  • Keywords: Aichi virus, Real-time PCR, River Water, Sewage Water