Norovirus is a major cause of foodborne-associated acute gastroenteritis (AGE) outbreaks worldwide. Usually, food products are contaminated either during harvesting or preparation, and the most common products associated to norovirus outbreaks are raw or undercooked bivalve shellfish, fruits (frozen berries) and ready-to-eat produce. In the present study, we investigated an AGE outbreak caused by norovirus associated with the consumption of ice pops in southern Brazil. Clinical stool samples from patients and ice pops samples were collected and analyzed for viruses’ detection. By using RT-qPCR and sequencing, we detected the uncommon genotype GII.12[P16] in clinical samples and GII.12 in samples of ice pop. Strains shared identity of 100% at nucleotide level strongly suggesting the consumption of ice pops as the source of the outbreak.

诺如病毒是全球食源性急性胃肠炎 (AGE) 暴发的主要原因。通常，食品在收获或制备过程中受到污染，与诺如病毒爆发相关的最常见产品是生的或未煮熟的双壳贝类、水果（冷冻浆果）和即食产品。在本研究中，我们调查了由诺如病毒引起的与巴西南部冰棒消费相关的 AGE 爆发。收集并分析来自患者的临床粪便样本和冰棒样本以进行病毒检测。通过使用 RT-qPCR 和测序，我们在临床样本中检测到罕见的基因型 GII.12[P16]，在冰棒样​​本中检测到 GII.12。菌株在核苷酸水平上具有 100% 的同一性，这强烈表明冰棒的消耗是爆发的源头。