Objective To analyze the genetic characteristics and molecular variation of human rhi-novirus strains isolated in Shenzhen.Methods RNA samples were extracted from nasopharyngeal swab samples collected from influenza-like subjects in Shenzhen and analyzed by fluorescent RT-PCR.The VP4-VP2 and VP1 gene regions of human rhinovirus strains were amplified by nested RT-PCR.Clustal W and MEGA programs were used to evaluate molecular variation of the human rhinovirus strains.Results Both human rhinovirus A and B were prevalent in Shenzhen during 2012.Human rhinoviruses A was the predomi-nant pathogen, including subtypes A47, A31, A90, A18 and so on.Two recombinant strains of human rhi-noviruses A47 and A31 were detected.The mutations scattered on the VP1 protein and varied in different subtypes.The receptor binding sites ( loop BC, DE and HI) in different subtypes showed polymorphism. Five out of twenty-five drug sensitivity sites ( I121V, L123M, V167I, Y189H and H259G) showed muta-tion.Conclusion Multiple subtypes of human rhinovirus were prevalent in Shenzhen and were in a state of constant recombination and variation.