tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Transbound Emerg Dis
. 2020 Oct 9.
doi: 10.1111/tbed.13872. Online ahead of print.
Potential zoonotic sources of SARS-CoV-2 infections
Wendy K Jo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Edmilson Ferreira de Oliveira-Filho[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Andrea Rasche[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Alex D Greenwood[SUP] 3 4 [/SUP], Klaus Osterrieder[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Jan Felix Drexler[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) causing coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) likely has evolutionary origins in other animals than humans based on genetically related viruses existing in rhinolophid bats and pangolins. Whether ongoing zoonotic infections are possible in addition to efficient human-to-human transmission remains unclear. In contrast, human-to-animal transmission can occur based on evidence provided from natural and experimental settings. Carnivores, including domestic cats, ferrets, and minks, appear to be highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 in contrast to poultry and other animals reared as livestock such as cattle and swine. Similar to other animal coronaviruses, SARS-CoV-2 contain a functional furin cleavage site in its spike protein, which may affect the SARS-CoV-2 host range and pathogenesis. Epidemiologic evidence supported by genomic sequencing corroborated mink-to-human transmission events in farm settings. Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between experimentally infected cats additionally substantiates the possibility of cat-to-human transmission. To evaluate the COVID-19 risk represented by domestic and farmed carnivores, experimental assessments should include surveillance and health assessment of domestic and farmed carnivores, characterization of the immune interplay between SARS-CoV-2 and carnivore coronaviruses, determination of the SARS-CoV-2 host range beyond carnivores, and identification of human risk groups such as veterinarians and farm workers. Strategies to mitigate the risk of zoonotic SARS-CoV-2 infections may have to be developed in a One Health framework and non-pharmaceutical interventions may have to consider free-roaming animals and the animal farming industry.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; carnivore; coronavirus; domestic animal; farmed animal.
. 2020 Oct 9.
doi: 10.1111/tbed.13872. Online ahead of print.
Potential zoonotic sources of SARS-CoV-2 infections
Wendy K Jo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Edmilson Ferreira de Oliveira-Filho[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Andrea Rasche[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Alex D Greenwood[SUP] 3 4 [/SUP], Klaus Osterrieder[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Jan Felix Drexler[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 33034151
- DOI: 10.1111/tbed.13872
Abstract
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) causing coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) likely has evolutionary origins in other animals than humans based on genetically related viruses existing in rhinolophid bats and pangolins. Whether ongoing zoonotic infections are possible in addition to efficient human-to-human transmission remains unclear. In contrast, human-to-animal transmission can occur based on evidence provided from natural and experimental settings. Carnivores, including domestic cats, ferrets, and minks, appear to be highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 in contrast to poultry and other animals reared as livestock such as cattle and swine. Similar to other animal coronaviruses, SARS-CoV-2 contain a functional furin cleavage site in its spike protein, which may affect the SARS-CoV-2 host range and pathogenesis. Epidemiologic evidence supported by genomic sequencing corroborated mink-to-human transmission events in farm settings. Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between experimentally infected cats additionally substantiates the possibility of cat-to-human transmission. To evaluate the COVID-19 risk represented by domestic and farmed carnivores, experimental assessments should include surveillance and health assessment of domestic and farmed carnivores, characterization of the immune interplay between SARS-CoV-2 and carnivore coronaviruses, determination of the SARS-CoV-2 host range beyond carnivores, and identification of human risk groups such as veterinarians and farm workers. Strategies to mitigate the risk of zoonotic SARS-CoV-2 infections may have to be developed in a One Health framework and non-pharmaceutical interventions may have to consider free-roaming animals and the animal farming industry.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; carnivore; coronavirus; domestic animal; farmed animal.