Detection and complete genome characterization of human enterovirus 118 from children with acute respiratory disease in China

Enterovirus 118 (EV-118) within species HEV-C was detected in two 5-month-old boys with pneumonia in China. The EV-118 from both cases was genetically closer to ISR10 strain from Israel than to PER161 strain from Peru based on VP1 gene sequences. The complete genome of the detected EV-118 consists of 7,360 nucleotides, excluding the poly (A) tail. The 5′UTR contains 669 nucleotides, and 3′UTR consists of 73 nucleotides. A single open reading frame from base 670 to 7,287 that encodes a 2,206-amino-acid polyprotein was featured. The base composition of the full genome is 27.9 % A, 24.2 % C, 24.4 % G, and 23.6 % U. Phylogenetic analysis of the full genome sequences illustrated EV-118 was genetically closer to EV-109 and EV-105, and the Chinese strain differed from Peru strain. In summary, the presence of EV-118 was confirmed in pediatric pneumonia cases and complete genome sequences were identified for the first time in China.