Human rotavirus genomic RNA electropherotypes in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 1988 to 1992

Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was used to analyze the double-stranded RNA of rotavirus recovered from stool specimens collected between March 1988 and December 1992 from children with acute diarrhoea admitted to the central hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Rotavirus was detected by ELISA in 523 specimens of the 1242 collected during the study, giving an overall prevalence of 42.2% for the 5 years of investigation. Out of 523 rotavirus-positive specimens, 263 (50.3%) were successfully electropherotyped. Eighteen different electropherotypes were observed, 12 long patterns and six short patterns. Eighty-seven per cent of the electropherotypes were of the long RNA pattern. The remaining were short electropherotypes. The predominant electropherotypes were two long patterns and maintained dominance over 5 years of the study. The third most predominant pattern was a short electropherotype. The remaining electropherotypes made minor contributions every year. These predominant electropherotypes were different from the predominant patterns detected in many countries. Temporal distribution was observed for 5 successive years for the predominant electropherotypes, with an increase in the incidence during the cooler months of the year.