A Longitudinal Study on Enteric Virus Contamination in Bivalves along the Coast of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan.

ABSTRACT: During the 2014 to 2018 seasons, we conducted a longitudinal study involving enteric virus surveillance in bivalves, including natural oysters and clams harvested in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Some norovirus (NoV) contaminations were detected in natural oysters, whereas no enteric virus was found in clams. NoVs detected in oysters were of the genotypes GII.4 and GII.6, both of which are closely related genetically to the NoV strains prevalent in humans. We found low level of enteric virus contamination in bivalves collected along the coast of Ibaraki Prefecture. The possibility of food poisoning caused by these viruses appears low, and few cases of infectious disease have been observed in the surrounding area. The harvest timing was more related to contamination quantity than the harvest area in many enteric viruses. Our results highlight that contamination of bivalves by enteric viruses may depend upon the prevalence of human diarrhea and illness.

Marginal Leakage of Endodontic Temporary Restorative Materials around Access Cavities Prepared with Pre-Endodontic Composite Build-Up: An In Vitro Study.

This study aimed to examine the marginal seal between various commercial temporary restorative materials and exposed dentin/built-up composite. Sixty bovine incisors were cut above the cemento-enamel junction, and half of the dentin was removed to form a step, which was built up using flowable resin composite. The root canals were irrigated, filled with calcium hydroxide, and sealed using one of six temporary sealing materials (hydraulic temporary restorative material, temporary stopping material, zinc oxide eugenol cement, glass-ionomer cement, auto-cured resin-based temporary restorative material, and light-cured resin-based temporary restorative material) (n = 10 for each material). The samples were thermocycled 500 times and immersed in an aqueous solution of methylene blue. After 2 days, they were cut along the long axis of the tooth and the depth of dye penetration was measured at the dentin side and the built-up composite side. For the margins of the pre-endodontic resin composite build-up, the two resin-based temporary restorative materials showed excellent sealing. Hydraulic temporary restorative material had a moderate sealing effect, but the sealing effect of both zinc oxide eugenol cement and glass-ionomer cement was poorer.

Variation of human norovirus GII genotypes detected in Ibaraki, Japan, during 2012-2018.

BACKGROUND: Human norovirus (HuNoV) is the major cause of viral acute gastroenteritis for all age groups in various countries. HuNoV GII in particular accounted for the majority of norovirus outbreaks, among which GII.4 caused repeated outbreaks for a long time. Besides GII.4, other norovirus genotypes, GII.2, GII.6, and GII.17, have also been prevalent in various contexts in recent years, but few detailed epidemiological studies of them have been performed and are poorly understood. We thus conducted an epidemiological analysis of HuNoV GII in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, by performing surveillance in the six seasons from September 2012 to August 2018. RESULTS: HuNoV GI occurred almost sporadically for all genotypes; however, each genotype of GII exhibited its typical epidemiological characteristics. Although the number of outbreaks of GII.4 decreased season by season, it reemerged in 2017/2018 season. The timing of the epidemic peak in terms of number of cases for GII.17 differed from that for the other genotypes. The patients age with GII.2 and GII.6 were younger and outbreak of GII.17 occurred frequently as food poisoning. Namely, the primarily infected outbreak group differed for each genotype of HuNoV GII. Moreover, the viral load of patients differed according to the genotype. CONCLUSIONS: Various HuNoV genotypes including GII.2, GII.4, GII.6, and GII.17 were shown to be associated with various types of outbreak sites (at childcare and educational facilities, involving cases of food poisoning, and at elderly nursing homes) in this study. These genotypes emerged in recent years, and their prevalence patterns differed from each other. Moreover, differences in outbreak sites and viral load of patients among the genotypes were identified.