Molecular characterization of the bovine noroviruses from diarrheic calves in Turkey

In this study, we performed a survey to detect bovine noroviruses (BNoVs) in Turkey between 2009 and 2011 using 235 fecal samples from neonatal calves with diarrhea that were analyzed by nested reverse-transcription RT-PCR, using primers located in the consensus sequences of the BNoV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) gene. The BNoV RdRp gene was detected in 1.7% (4/235) of samples by nested RT-PCR. The nucleotide sequences of partial RdRp fragments from the BNoV isolates including the newly identified Turkish isolates showed more than 86.3% nt and 96.8% aa identity with each other. Interestingly, in a comparison of the nt and aa sequences, one of the Turkish BNoV strains was found to be 100% aa identical with some Italian and Tunisian strains. In conclusion, BNoV is one of the pathogens that contributes to neonatal calf diarrhea cases in Turkey.