Postoperative Panophthalmitis Caused by Whipple Disease

to detect the virus and determine the amount of the viral RNA in the medium. Cells and supernatants of the 3 passages were virus positive, and the control inoculated with phosphatebuffered saline was virus negative. However, with each passage, the amount of viral RNA in the medium decreased. Whether the positive result was caused by residual viruses of the initial inoculation or by the decreased propagation of the virus in the cells is not clear. Further studies, such as continuous serial passages and neutralization assay, are needed to determine the fi nal activity of the virus in RD cells, as well as in other cells such as Vero and HeLa, because several species of picornaviruses have been identifi ed as causing persistent infections in these cells in vitro (6–10). In conclusion, we report the genetic characterization and biological properties of a new agent in China. Of note, while we were preparing this article, a similar article from Hungary was published (5). After comparing our 1,185-bp sequence with the sequence from Hungary, we found that our sequence was 171 bp longer at the 3′ end and 50 bp shorter at the 5′ end and that the truncated sequence in the middle (same length) had a nucleotide homology of 92.1%. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the 2 sequences may share the same origin (Figure, panel B). In addition, prevalence of our virus (30.12%) was higher than that of the virus from Hungary (13.3%). Further studies are needed to determine the complete genome and the relevance of the candidate porcine Kobuvirus as a causative agent of disease in pigs and a potential zoonotic agent.