Molecular Genetic Methods for Detection and Genotyping of Human Sapoviruses (Review)

Sapovirus (genus Sapovirus, family Caliciviridae), along with norovirus, is recognized as an important cause of acute intestinal infection (AII) in humans. Human sapovirus strains exhibit significant genetic diversity. The existence of 18 genotypes, combined into four genogroups (GI, GII, GIV, GV), has been shown. Reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) techniques are widely used for the detection of sapoviruses in clinical samples due to their high sensitivity and broad reactivity. To further characterize the identified sapoviruses, genotyping is carried out, which is the basis for constructing a classification system for human sapoviruses. The purpose of this review was to highlight modern methods for the detection and genotyping of sapoviruses based on the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and viral genome sequencing.