Noroviruses(NoVs)arewidespreadcausesofnonbacterialgastroenteritis.OutbreaksofNoVscauseddiseasesarecommonlyascribedtotheconsumptionofcontaminatedshellfish.TheconcentrationandRNAextractionofNoVsarecrucialstepsofdetectingNoVsinshellfish.Thisstudyaimedtoselectasimple,rapidandhighlyefficientrecoverymethodofNoVsdetectionwithreal-timeRT-PCR.FourmethodsofrecoveringGI.3andGII.4NoVsfromspikeddigestivetissuesofoystersandclams,respectively,werecompared,ofthem,themethodinvolvingproteinaseKandPEG8000wasfoundthemostefficient.Withthismethod,9.3%and13.1%ofGI.3andGII.4NoVswererecoveredfromoystersand9.6%and12.3%ofGI.3andGII.4NoVswererecoveredfromclams,respectively.ThismethodwasfurtherusedtodetectNoVsin84oysters(Crassostreagigas)and86clams(Ruditapesphilippinarum)collectedfrom10coastalcitiesinChinafromJan.2011toFeb.2012.TheNoVsisolationrateswere10.47%ofclams(9/86)and7.14%ofoysters(6/84).AllthedetectedNoVsbelongedtogenotypeGII.TheNoVsrecoverymethodselectedisefficientforNoVsdetectioninoystersandclams.
