The makings of a good human norovirus surrogate.

Norovirus is undoubtedly a leading cause of acute gastroenteritis. A large limitation to the study of human norovirus is the lack of consensus research using norovirus surrogates. Over two decades of research have included vast comparisons of norovirus surrogates within the Calicivirus family. A discussion on the continued use of norovirus surrogates includes use of surrogates to adequately assess environmental persistence and food preservation technologies. Choice of proper surrogate may be influenced by a myriad of issues, including ease of propagation, genetic similarities, and binding properties. While it remains impossible to routinely culture human norovirus in vitro the continued use of a variety of norovirus surrogates remains crucial to facilitate an understanding of norovirus in order to reduce the public health impact of the disease.