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Gerhards NM, Gonzales JL, Vreman S, Ravesloot L, van den Brand JMA, Doekes HP, Egberink HF, Stegeman A, Oreshkova N, van der Poel WHM, de Jong MCM. Efficient Direct and Limited Environmental Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Lineage B.1.22 in Domestic Cats. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0255322. [PMID: 37222603 PMCID: PMC10269887 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02553-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The susceptibility of domestic cats to infection with SARS-CoV-2 has been demonstrated by several experimental studies and field observations. We performed an extensive study to further characterize the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between cats, through both direct and indirect contact. To that end, we estimated the transmission rate parameter and the decay parameter for infectivity in the environment. Using four groups of pair-transmission experiment, all donor (inoculated) cats became infected, shed virus, and seroconverted, while three out of four direct contact cats got infected, shed virus, and two of those seroconverted. One out of eight cats exposed to a SARS-CoV-2-contaminated environment became infected but did not seroconvert. Statistical analysis of the transmission data gives a reproduction number R0 of 2.18 (95% CI = 0.92 to 4.08), a transmission rate parameter β of 0.23 day-1 (95% CI = 0.06 to 0.54), and a virus decay rate parameter μ of 2.73 day-1 (95% CI = 0.77 to 15.82). These data indicate that transmission between cats is efficient and can be sustained (R0 > 1), however, the infectiousness of a contaminated environment decays rapidly (mean duration of infectiousness 1/2.73 days). Despite this, infections of cats via exposure to a SARS-CoV-2-contaminated environment cannot be discounted if cats are exposed shortly after contamination. IMPORTANCE This article provides additional insight into the risk of infection that could arise from cats infected with SARS-CoV-2 by using epidemiological models to determine transmission parameters. Considering that transmission parameters are not always provided in the literature describing transmission experiments in animals, we demonstrate that mathematical analysis of experimental data is crucial to estimate the likelihood of transmission. This article is also relevant to animal health professionals and authorities involved in risk assessments for zoonotic spill-overs of SARS-CoV-2. Last but not least, the mathematical models to calculate transmission parameters are applicable to analyze the experimental transmission of other pathogens between animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora M. Gerhards
- Department of Bioinformatics, Epidemiology and Animal Models, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | - Jose L. Gonzales
- Department of Bioinformatics, Epidemiology and Animal Models, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | - Sandra Vreman
- Department of Bacteriology, Host-Pathogen Interactions and Diagnostic Development, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | - Lars Ravesloot
- Department of Bacteriology, Host-Pathogen Interactions and Diagnostic Development, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | | | - Harmen P. Doekes
- Animal Breeding and Genomics, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Herman F. Egberink
- Division Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Section Virology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Arjan Stegeman
- Department of Population Health Sciences, Veterinary Epidemiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Nadia Oreshkova
- Department of Virology and Molecular Biology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | - Wim H. M. van der Poel
- Department of Virology and Molecular Biology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, Lelystad, the Netherlands
| | - Mart C. M. de Jong
- Quantitative Veterinary Epidemiology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands
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Nielsen SS, Alvarez J, Bicout DJ, Calistri P, Canali E, Drewe JA, Garin‐Bastuji B, Gonzales Rojas JL, Gortázar C, Herskin M, Michel V, Miranda Chueca MÁ, Padalino B, Pasquali P, Roberts HC, Spoolder H, Velarde A, Viltrop A, Winckler C, Adlhoch C, Aznar I, Baldinelli F, Boklund A, Broglia A, Gerhards N, Mur L, Nannapaneni P, Ståhl K. SARS-CoV-2 in animals: susceptibility of animal species, risk for animal and public health, monitoring, prevention and control. EFSA J 2023; 21:e07822. [PMID: 36860662 PMCID: PMC9968901 DOI: 10.2903/j.efsa.2023.7822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The epidemiological situation of SARS-CoV-2 in humans and animals is continually evolving. To date, animal species known to transmit SARS-CoV-2 are American mink, raccoon dog, cat, ferret, hamster, house mouse, Egyptian fruit bat, deer mouse and white-tailed deer. Among farmed animals, American mink have the highest likelihood to become infected from humans or animals and further transmit SARS-CoV-2. In the EU, 44 outbreaks were reported in 2021 in mink farms in seven MSs, while only six in 2022 in two MSs, thus representing a decreasing trend. The introduction of SARS-CoV-2 into mink farms is usually via infected humans; this can be controlled by systematically testing people entering farms and adequate biosecurity. The current most appropriate monitoring approach for mink is the outbreak confirmation based on suspicion, testing dead or clinically sick animals in case of increased mortality or positive farm personnel and the genomic surveillance of virus variants. The genomic analysis of SARS-CoV-2 showed mink-specific clusters with a potential to spill back into the human population. Among companion animals, cats, ferrets and hamsters are those at highest risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, which most likely originates from an infected human, and which has no or very low impact on virus circulation in the human population. Among wild animals (including zoo animals), mostly carnivores, great apes and white-tailed deer have been reported to be naturally infected by SARS-CoV-2. In the EU, no cases of infected wildlife have been reported so far. Proper disposal of human waste is advised to reduce the risks of spill-over of SARS-CoV-2 to wildlife. Furthermore, contact with wildlife, especially if sick or dead, should be minimised. No specific monitoring for wildlife is recommended apart from testing hunter-harvested animals with clinical signs or found-dead. Bats should be monitored as a natural host of many coronaviruses.
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Zhang P, Luo S, Zou P, Liang C, Wang C, Li J, Li Y, Wang G, Zhang L, Li T, Li C. Vaccination of cats with Sad23L-nCoV-S vaccine candidate against major variants of SARS-CoV-2. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2022; 26:181-190. [PMID: 35756078 PMCID: PMC9217069 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2022.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Cats are susceptible to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and risk transmitting viruses to naive cats or humans. Here, based on our novel adenovirus-vectored COVID-19 vaccine, the immunogenicity of Sad23L-nCoV-S vaccine was evaluated in cats by prime-boost vaccinations. Five cats were primed with a dose of 108 plaque-forming units (PFUs) Sad23L-nCoV-S vaccine and then boosted with an equal dose of same vaccine at a 4-week interval. Cat serum neutralizing antibody (NAb) titers (the sample dilution at which 50% inhibitory concentration [IC50]) were measured as IC50 15,849 to wild-type strain, IC50 6,591 to Alpha, IC50 2,315 to Beta, IC50 2,744 to Gamma, IC50 1,848 to Delta, and IC50 318 to Omicron variants of pseudotyped SARS-CoV-2 viruses at week 6 post-prime vaccination. All NAb levels to these five variants were ≥IC50 49 from vaccinated cats at week 10, while 48.8% to Delta and 100% to Omicron variants were <IC50 10 from human vaccinees at week 2 or 4 after receiving two injections of the inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Robust T cell response of interferon (IFN)-γ to S peptides were detected in vaccinated cats. It was concluded that Sad23L-nCoV-S vaccine could be a promising vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 infection in cats by prime or plus boost vaccinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Panli Zhang
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
| | - Shengxue Luo
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Department of Pediatrics, Shenzhen Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen 518101, China
- Guangzhou Bai Rui Kang (BRK) Biological Science and Technology Limited Company, Guangzhou 510000, China
| | - Peng Zou
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Guangzhou Bai Rui Kang (BRK) Biological Science and Technology Limited Company, Guangzhou 510000, China
| | - Chaolan Liang
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
| | - Cong Wang
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Guangzhou Bai Rui Kang (BRK) Biological Science and Technology Limited Company, Guangzhou 510000, China
| | - Jinfeng Li
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Molecular Epidemiology, Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Yongyin Li
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
| | - Gang Wang
- Guangdong Medical Laboratory Animal Center, Foshan 528248, China
| | - Ling Zhang
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Guangzhou Bai Rui Kang (BRK) Biological Science and Technology Limited Company, Guangzhou 510000, China
- Corresponding author Ling Zhang, Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
| | - Tingting Li
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Corresponding author Tingting Li, Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
| | - Chengyao Li
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
- Guangzhou Bai Rui Kang (BRK) Biological Science and Technology Limited Company, Guangzhou 510000, China
- Corresponding author Chengyao Li, Department of Transfusion Medicine, School of Laboratory Medicine and Biotechnology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
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Mind the feline coronavirus: Comparison with SARS-CoV-2. Gene 2022; 825:146443. [PMID: 35337854 PMCID: PMC8938304 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.146443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2021] [Revised: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Both feline coronavirus (FCoV) and SARS-CoV-2 are coronaviruses that infect cats and humans, respectively. However, cats have been shown to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, and FCoV also had been shown to infect human. To elucidate the relationship between FCoV and SARS-CoV-2, we highlight the main characteristics of the genome, the receptor usage, and the correlation of the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of spike proteins in FCoV and SARS-CoV-2. It is demonstrated that FCoV and SARS-CoV-2 are closely related to the main characteristics of the genome, receptor usage, and RBD of spike proteins with similar furin cleavage sites. In particular, the affinity of the conserved feline angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (fACE2) receptor to the RBD of SARS-CoV-2 suggests that cats are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2. In addition, cross-species of coronaviruses between cats and humans or other domesticated animals are also discussed. This review sheds light on cats as potential intermediate hosts for SARS-CoV-2 transmission, and cross-species transmission or zoonotic infection of FCoV and SARS-CoV-2 between cats and humans was identified.
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