SARS-CoV-2 transmission modes: Why and how contamination occurs around shared meals and drinks?

COVID-19 in a common woolly monkey (Lagothrix lagothricha): First evidence of fatal outcome in a nonhuman primate after natural SARS-CoV-2 infection

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. Since then, viral spread from humans to animals has occurred worldwide. Nonhuman primates (NHPs) have been found to be susceptible to reverse-zoonosis transmission of SARS-CoV-2, but initial research suggested that platyrrhine primates are less susceptible than catarrhine primates. Here we report the natural SARS-CoV-2 infection of a common woolly monkey (Lagothrix lagothricha) from a wildlife rehabilitation center in Ecuador. The course of the disease, the eventual death of the specimen, and the pathological findings are described. Our results show the susceptibility of a new platyrrhine species to SARS-CoV-2 and provide evidence for the first time of a COVID-19-associated death in a naturally infected NHP. The putative route of transmission from humans, and implications for captive NHPs management, are also discussed. Given that common woolly monkeys are at risk of extinction in Ecuador, further understanding of the potential threat of SARS-CoV-2 to their health should be a conservation priority. A One Health approach is the best way to protect NHPs from a new virus in the same way that we would protect the human population.

Screening Commercial Tea for Rapid Inactivation of Infectious SARS-CoV-2 in Saliva

SARS-CoV-2 infects the oral mucosa and is shed in salivary fluids. Traditionally, tea has been used by various cultures to treat respiratory ailments. The objective of this study was to identify commercially available teas that can rapidly inactivate infectious SARS-CoV-2 in saliva. Initially, tea (n = 24) was prepared as 40 mg/mL infusions and incubated with SARS-CoV-2 resuspended in water, for 5 min at 37 °C. Then, five teas that showed >3 log reduction in virus infectivity were further investigated at 40 and 10 mg/mL infusions for 60 and 10 s contact time with SARS-CoV-2 resuspended in saliva. Tea polyphenols were measured using the Folin-Ciocalteu assay. SARS-CoV-2 infectivity was quantified on Vero-E6 cell line using TCID50 assay. At 10 mg/mL infusion, black tea showed the highest reduction (3 log, i.e., 99.9%) of infectious SARS-CoV-2 within 10 s. Green, mint medley, eucalyptus-mint, and raspberry zinger teas showed similar inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 (1.5-2 log, i.e., 96-99% reduction). At 40 mg/mL infusions, all five teas showed >3 log reduction in virus infectivity within 10 s. Tea polyphenol but not pH was significantly correlated to virus reduction. Time-of-addition assay revealed that the five teas displayed preventive effects (0.5-1 log, i.e., 68-90% reduction) against SARS-CoV-2 infection of Vero-E6 cells as well as during post-virus infection (1.2-1.9 log, i.e., 94-98%). However, the highest inhibitory effect was observed when the teas were added at the time of virus infection (2-3 log, i.e., 99-99.9%). Our results provide insights into a rapid at-home intervention (tea drinking or gargling) to reduce infectious SARS-CoV-2 load in the oral cavity which might also mitigate infection of the oral mucosa.

In vitro digestion of SARS-CoV-2 contaminated berries reveals high inactivation of infectious virus during gastrointestinal passage

IMPORTANCE

During the pandemic, news outlets occasionally reported on the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) RNA on various foods, raising concerns over contaminated foods initiating infections. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients often experience gastrointestinal symptoms and shed SARS-CoV-2 RNA in their feces. In addition, active virus replication in the gastrointestinal tract was shown; however, infectious viruses were rarely detected in feces. We previously showed that SARS-CoV-2 remained infectious on frozen berries for at least a month. Here, in vitro digestion models showed that SARS-CoV-2 on berries exhibits minimal inactivation at the oral phase and the virus may escape gastric inactivation early during feeding. However, high intestinal inactivation of the virus on berries suggested that SARS-CoV-2 was less likely to initiate infection in the small intestine. In contrast, the oral cavity is a potential site where infection might be initiated, providing more input for the gastrointestinal tract. High intestinal inactivation might explain the difficulty of detecting infectious SARS-CoV-2 in feces but not of virus RNA.