Background: polyomaviruses are human virus associated with acute viral gastroenteritis globally and an essential cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in developing countries. However, there are still few published data on the happens of these viruses in Sudan. This study was conducted to investigate the molecular epidemiology of polyomaviruses in children less than 5 years with acute gastroenteritis.

Methods: A total of 208 stool samples were collected from hospitalized children under five years of age presenting with acute gastroenteritis, in Khartoum State, Sudan, during the period from November 2017 – May 2021, For the detection of Polyomavirus DNA from stool samples was extracted using Qiagen DNA kits from all samples, followed by Multiplex nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)

Results: The study revealed that 26 (12.5%) were positive for Polyomavirus. The study found no significant difference in the positivity of Polyomavirus according to the gender (p values= 0.66). Moreover, the study found no significant difference in the positivity of Polyomavirus according to the status of the polio-vaccination (p values= 0.946). The study showed that the majority of positive cases of Polyomavirus were younger than 4 years, with significant association (p < 0.001), The current study showed that there was strong association between Polyoma virus and gastroenteritis diseases (p. value = 0.00)

Conclusions: The present study showed that Polyoma virus are an important causative agents of gastroenteritis in children less than 5 years .There is a great need for introducing routine Polyoma virus testing of hospitalized children with gastroenteritis.

1. Bern, C, Martines, J, Zoysa, I, and Glass, RI,. (2009). The magnitude of the global problem of diarrhoeal disease: a ten-year update. B W H 70 (6):705-714.
2. Cavallo, JD and Garrabé. En. (2007) . Infectious aetiologies of travelers’ diarrhea [in French]. Med Mal Infect; (37): p722-737.
3. Diaa Elyana, Momtaz Wasfya, Hanan El Mohammadya, Khaled Hassana, et al (2014). Non-bacterial etiologies of diarrheal diseases in Afghanistan Transactions Royal Soc Tropical Med & Hyg 108 (8): p 461-465.
4. Elhag, W. I., Saeed, H. A., Omer, E. F. E., and Ali, A. S., (2013). Prevalence of rotavirus and adenovirus associated with diarrhea among displaced communities in Khartoum, Sudan. BMC Infectious Diseases, (13):
5. Eman M Tatay1, Abdel Rahim M El Hussein2, Mohamed O. Mustafa2, Isam M Elkhidir3et al ( 2018) Molecular Detection of Norovirus 1, 2 in Children Less than 5Years with Gastroenteritis in Khartoum and Al Jazeera States, Sudan IJSRSET | Volume 4 | Issue 9 | Print ISSN: 2395-1990
6. Fadi S. I. Qashqari (2022).Human Mastadenovirus Infections in Children: A Review of the Current Status in the Arab World in the Middle East and North Africa; Children, 9, https://doi.org/10.3390/children9091356
7. Guerrant, R.L, Hughes, J.M, Lima, N.L and Crane, J., (2005) Diarrhoea in developed and developing countries: magnitude, special settings, and etiologies. Revi of infec dis (12): p41-50.
8. Javad Sharifi-Rad (2015). Frequency of Adenoviruses, Rotaviruses and Noroviruses Among Diarrhea Samples Collected From Infants of Zabol, Southeastern Iran Jundishapur J Microbiol. (3): p40-54
9. Ki le (2013), prevalence of 10 Human polyomaviruses in fecal sample from children with acute enteritis Clin.Microbiol. September 2013 (51): p 3107-3109
10. Kosek, M.B.C and Guerrant, R.L., (2003). The global burden or diarrheal disease. Bull World Health Organ, 81(3): 197-204.
11. Mosab A. Adam1,2†, Ji Wang1†, Khalid-A. et al 2018 Molecular Survey of Viral and Bacterial Causes of Childhood Diarrhea in Khartoum State, Sudan Frontiers in Microbiology Volume 9 |Article 112.
12. Parashar, U, Umesh, Bresee,J.S, Joseph, S, et al., (2010).The global burden of diarrhoeal Disease in children. Bull World Health Organ. (1): p 115-123.
13. Paula, A. S, Klaus, S, Frank, P. M, Klaus, et al S,. (2008). Molecular Characterization of polyoma Virus Agents From Children in Northern Region of Ghana J Med Virol 80:1790–1798.
14. Perez-Losada, M, Christensen, R. G, McClellan, D. A,Adams, B. J,et al, (2006). "Comparing Phylogenetic Codivergence between Polyomaviruses and Their Hosts". Journal of Virology 80 (12): 5663.
15. Siebrasse EA, Reyes A, Lim ES, Zhao G, et al. (2012),.Identification of MW polyomavirus, a novel polyomavirus in human stool. J Virol.;(81): p203-216.
16. Vargas, M. G.J, Casals, C, Schellenberg ,D, Urassa,H,et al. J.,(2014). Etiology of diarrheal disease in children less than five years of age Ifakara, Tanzania ,70(5): p536-539.

Shaza Salih