A longitudinal study on respiratory viral infection for healthy volunteers

Abstract

Human-to-human transmission by means of droplets is an important route of infection for respiratory viruses. Therefore, outbreaks are thought to spread via asymptomatic and/or mildly symptomatic infected persons. We reported previously that several viruses were detected in children regardless of their health condition. Respiratory tract viral infection is one of the most common and important diseases of children. When we consider their range of movement, adults might spread viruses to the community more easily than children. Although asymptomatic rates may vary depending on the host s age and the virus, little is known about what respiratory viruses are present in adults with subclinical or mild symptoms. In this study, we investigated how often, how long, and what respiratory viruses were present in asymptomatic adults. Gargle samples obtained by rinsing the throat with distilled water were collected from participants once a week and subjected to two-step real-time PCR to detect respiratory viruses. Sixteen singleplex real-time PCRs were employed for the detection of the following respiratory viral pathogens: parainfluenza viruses (PIVs) 1, 2, 3, and 4, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (hMPV), enterovirus (EV)/ rhinovirus (RV), human bocavirus (hBoV), human parechovirus (hPeV), adenovirus (AdV), human coronaviruses (hCoV) OC43, NL63, 229E, and HKU-1, and influenza virus (FluV) type C, and one-step real-time reverse transcription (RT)-PCR was used for detection FluV A and B.