Detection and Molecular Characterization of Porcine Enteric Calicivirus in Korea, Genetically Related to Sapoviruses

Summary Porcine enteric calicivirus (PECV) shares morphological and genetical similarities with Sapoviruses (SVs), which are the leading cause of epidemic, non‐bacterial gastroenteritis in children worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of PECV infection in pig farms in Korea, and to compare the evolutionary inter‐relationships between Korean PECVs and other caliciviruses. Among 102 diarrhoeic faecal samples of sucking (n = 50) and weaned (n = 52) piglets from 31 different farms in Korea, five samples (4.9%) were detected positive by reverse‐transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (PCR), but nine (8.8%) by nested‐PCR. Furthermore, we found that Korean PECVs are closely related to SVs.