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Could Mustelids spur COVID-19 into a panzootic?
Abstract
The ongoing pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has spilled over into humans from an animal reservoir. Notably, the virus is now spilling back into a variety of animal species. It appears striking that American (Neovison vison) and European (Mustela vison) minks are the first intensively farmed animal to experience outbreaks. Neither of these have occurred in Asia or Africa but rather in Europe - namely Spain, Denmark, Netherlands and in the US, at a mink farm in Utah. Current evidence indicates that the virus was transmitted to the animals through infected human workers on the farm.At the time of writing, SARS-CoV-2 infection has not been documented in any other intensively farmed species, suggesting that mustelids may exhibit a higher susceptibility to the virus. Studies have shown that domestic ferrets have an extremely low resistance to COVID-19 infection (Shi et al. 2020). Mustelids comprise approximately 60 different species (Kollas et al. 2015) and are widely distributed across a number of habitats, both aquatic (marine and freshwater), and terrestrial (prairies, steppes, tundra, forests). Several wild mustelids have become acclimated to urban areas - such as raccoons, otters and badgers, and some are raised in households as pets - such as ferrets. The latter are perhaps at greater risk of infection than their cousins inhabiting the wild, but it is the former that we should be most worried about. If infection by SARS-CoV-2 spills into wild mustelids, these have the potential to become a permanent reservoir of infection for other animal species. Such a scenario has been seen before with rabies in raccoons and skunks (Rupprecht et al. 1995) and with bovine tuberculosis in badgers (Gallagher and Clifton-Hadley 2000).We believe that it is important to prioritize studies in mustelids on their putative role as reservoirs and amplifiers of SARS-CoV-2 infection in animals and subsequently humans. The development of appropriate surveillance and intervention strategies will determine if mustelids are one of the key links in the chain to the initiation of an unprecedented epochal event: a panzootic.
... Among the animal species that are susceptible to natural SARS-CoV-2 infection, farmed minks pose a considerable threat to public health (Oreshkova et al. 2020;Oude Munnink et al. 2020). SARS-CoV-2 infection has been reported in both European (Mustela vison) and American (Neovison vison) minks (Manes et al. 2020). The rapid transmission of SARS-CoV-2 among minks and the associated mutations has resulted in a new mink-associated variant that has been identified in both minks and humans WHO 2020a). ...
... Furthermore, in the event where the SARS-CoV-2 transmission spectrum extends to the wild mustelids (minks and ferrets), the animals can later develop into permanent reservoir hosts and can transmit the infection to human beings and other susceptible animal species (Delahay et al. 2020;Manes et al. 2020). The increasing cases of COVID-19 in humans will further enable elucidation of the mechanisms of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to susceptible animal species, and hence may result in the establishment of viral reservoirs that can transmit the virus again to human beings (Opriessnig and Huang 2020). ...
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has now affected over 72.5 million people worldwide, with nearly 1.6 million deaths reported globally as of December 17, 2020. SARS-CoV-2 has been implicated to have originated from bats and pangolins, and its intermediate animal hosts are being investigated. Crossing of the species barrier and exhibition of zoonosis have been reported in SARS-CoV-2 in farm (minks), domesticated (cats and dogs), and wild animals (tigers, puma, and lions). Recently, the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection was reported in mink farms, which led to the death of a myriad minks. The clinical and pathological findings of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the rapid animal-to-animal transmission in minks are almost similar to the findings observed in patients with COVID-19. Additionally, the rapid virus transmission among minks and the associated mutations resulted in a new mink-associated variant that was identified in both minks and humans, thereby providing evidence of mink-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2. The new mink-associated SARS-CoV-2 variant with a possible reduced sensitivity to neutralizing antibodies poses serious risks and is expected to have a direct effect on the diagnostic techniques, therapeutics, and vaccines that are currently under development. This article highlights the current evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in farmed minks, and provides an understanding of the pathogenesis of COVID-19 in minks and the associated zoonotic concerns of SARS-CoV-2 transmission from minks to humans with an emphasis on appropriate mitigation measures and on the necessity of adopting the One Health approach during the COVID-19 pandemic.
... Due to the magnitude of farmed mink populations (in both population size and geographical reach), in addition with the established transmission pathways (Fig 1) and the ability of SARS-CoV-2 to accumulate potentially harmful mutations rapidly, zoonotic viral transmission poses a significant threat to global public health (Oreshkova, Molenaar et al. 2020, Sharun, Tiwari et al. 2021. Furthermore, the formation of a permanent reservoir of SARS-CoV-2 in wildlife populations could lead to spill-back events of animal-adapted lineages of the virus into the human population, and other susceptible animals (Manes, Gollakner et al. 2020, Delahay, de la Fuente et al. 2021, Kotwa, Massé et al. 2022, Pickering, Lung et al. 2022, Willgert, Didelot et al. 2022. Our work emphasises the necessity of a "One Health" approach to surveillance: to track any zoonotic spread of SARS-CoV-2, identify outbreaks in novel hosts rapidly, and monitor ongoing spread of SARS-CoV-2 after host-switching to prevent the establishment of a viral reservoir. ...
To investigate genetic signatures of adaptation to the mink host, we characterised the evolutionary rate heterogeneity in mink-associated SARS-CoV-2. In 2020, the first detected anthropozoonotic spillover event of SARS-CoV-2 occurred in mink farms throughout Europe and North America. Both spill-back of mink-associated lineages into the human population and spread into surrounding wildlife was reported, highlighting the potential formation of a zoonotic reservoir. Our findings suggest the evolutionary rate of SARS-CoV-2 underwent an episodic increase upon introduction to the mink host before returning to the normal range observed in humans. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 lineages could have circulated in the mink population for a month before detection, and during this period, evolutionary rate estimates reached 6.59 x 10-3, a 9-fold increase compared to that in humans. As there is evidence for unique mutational patterns within mink-associated lineages, we explored the emergence of 4 mink-specific mutations Y486F, S1147L, F486L and Q314K. We found that mutation Y486F emerged early in multiple mink outbreaks, and that mutations F486L and Q314K may co-occur. We suggest that SARS-CoV-2 undergoes a brief, but considerable, increase in evolutionary rate in response to greater selective pressures during species jumps, which may lead to the occurrence of mink-specific mutations. These findings emphasise the necessity of ongoing surveillance of zoonotic SARS-CoV-2 infections in the future.
... The concept behind the term "pandemic" has evolved over the centuries to describe philosophical, social, and medical issues which had 2 common characteristics: they affected human beings and were widespread phenomena. We can say that this is certainly true also for SARS-CoV-2 infection, but "pandemic" is perhaps insufficient to encompass and define the magnitude of what we are observing with multispecies infections caused by this virus (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17). ...
... Genetic and epidemiologic investigations demonstrated animalto-human and human-to-animal transmission of the virus [70]. These data cause concerns about the possible infection of wild mustelids, which could become permanent reservoirs of the virus [71]. Indeed, in October 2020 a wild mink in Utah (USA) tested positive, resulting in the first case of infection in wild animals [72]. ...
In December 2019, several cases of pneumonia caused by a novel coronavirus, later identified as SARS-CoV-2, were detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Due to its rapid worldwide spread, on 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization declared a pandemic state. Since this new virus is genetically similar to the coronaviruses of bats, SARS-CoV-2 was hypothesized to have a zoonotic origin. Within a year of the appearance of SARS-CoV-2, several cases of infection were also reported in animals, suggesting human-to-animal and animal-to-animal transmission among mammals. Natural infection has been found in companion animals as well as captive animals such as lions, tigers, and gorillas. Among farm animals, so far, minks have been found to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection, whereas not all the relevant studies agree on the susceptibility of pigs. Experimental infections have documented the susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 of further animal species, including mice, hamsters, cats, dogs, ferrets, raccoon dogs, cattle, and non-human primates. Experimental infections have proven crucial for clarifying the role of animals in transmission and developing models for viral pathogenesis and immunotherapy. On the whole, this review aims to update and critically revise the current information on natural and experimental SARS-CoV-2 infections in animals.
... Mink was the first extensively farmed species affected by COVID-19, and epidemiological investigation has suggested that mustelids, including minks and ferrets, are more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 than other animals [36]. Mink-to-mink and mink-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2 have been reported on several mink farms in the Netherlands, Denmark, the USA, and Spain [37][38][39]. Some mutations have accumulated in the viral genomes during transmission of the virus between humans and minks. ...
SARS-CoV-2 infection, which is the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic, has expanded across various animal hosts, and the virus can be transmitted particularly efficiently in minks. It is still not clear how SARS-CoV-2 is selected and evolves in its hosts, or how mutations affect viral fitness. In this report, sequences of SARS-CoV-2 isolated from human and animal hosts were analyzed, and the binding energy and capacity of the spike protein to bind human ACE2 and the mink receptor were compared. Codon adaptation index (CAI) analysis indicated the optimization of viral codons in some animals such as bats and minks, and a neutrality plot demonstrated that natural selection had a greater influence on some SARS-CoV-2 sequences than mutational pressure. Molecular dynamics simulation results showed that the mutations Y453F and N501T in mink SARS-CoV-2 could enhance the binding of the viral spike to the mink receptor, indicating the involvement of these mutations in natural selection and viral fitness. Receptor binding analysis revealed that the mink SARS-CoV-2 spike interacted more strongly with the mink receptor than the human receptor. Tracking the variations and codon bias of SARS-CoV-2 is helpful for understanding the fitness of the virus in virus transmission, pathogenesis, and immune evasion.
... While the role of free-living wildlife in the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 remains unclear, the susceptibility and potential of a wildlife species as a reservoir could hold substantiable implications, not just for public health, but for the management, research, rehabilitation, and conservation of other susceptible animal species (23). In North America, several members of the Musteloidea (Mustelidae, Mephitidae, and Procyonidae) families are both taxonomically and ecologically relevant and likely have a high probability of becoming exposed to, infected with, and developing clinical disease to SARS-CoV-2 (24)(25)(26)(27)(28). In fact, ferrets (Mustela putorius furo), close relatives to North American Musteloidea, are wellestablished animal models for SARS (29)(30)(31)(32) and are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 (8)(9)(10)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38). ...
Recent spillback events of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to animals has raised concerns about it becoming endemic in wildlife. A sylvatic cycle of SARS-CoV-2 could present multiple opportunities for repeated spillback into human populations and other susceptible wildlife. Based on their taxonomy and natural history, two native North American wildlife species —the striped skunk ( Mephitis mephitis ) and the raccoon ( Procyon lotor) —represent a high likelihood of susceptibility and ecological opportunity of becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2. Eight skunks and raccoons were each intranasally inoculated with one of two doses of the virus (10 ³ PFU and 10 ⁵ PFU) and housed in pairs. To evaluate direct transmission, a naïve animal was added to each inoculated pair 48 h post-inoculation. Four control animals of each species were handled like the experimental groups. At predetermined intervals, we collected nasal and rectal swabs to quantify virus shed via virus isolation and detect viral RNA via rRT-PCR and blood for serum neutralization. Lastly, animals were euthanized at staggered intervals to describe disease progression through histopathology and immunohistochemistry. No animals developed clinical disease. All intranasally inoculated animals seroconverted, suggesting both species are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. The highest titers in skunks and raccoons were 1:128 and 1:64, respectively. Low quantities of virus were isolated from 2/8 inoculated skunks for up to day 5 post-inoculation, however no virus was isolated from inoculated raccoons or direct contacts of either species. Neither species had gross lesions, but recovering mild chronic pneumonia consistent with viral insult was recorded histologically in 5/8 inoculated skunks. Unlike another SARS-CoV-2 infection trial in these species, we detected neutralizing antibodies in inoculated raccoons; thus, future wildlife serologic surveillance results must be interpreted with caution. Due to the inability to isolate virus from raccoons, the lack of evidence of direct transmission between both species, and low amount of virus shed by skunks, it seems unlikely for SARS-CoV-2 to become established in raccoon and skunk populations and for virus to spillback into humans. Continued outbreaks in non-domestic species, wild and captive, highlight that additional research on the susceptibility of SARS-CoV-2 in wildlife, especially musteloidea, and of conservation concern, is needed.
... Likely spillback of virus from farmed mink to humans has already been observed (Opriessnig and Huang 2020;Munnink et al. 2020). Genetic adaptive changes in SARS-CoV-2 in mink represent a potentially important zoonotic and anthropozoonotic risks (Manes et al. 2020;Munnink et al. 2020;Colitti et al.;Koopmans 2021;Boklund et al. 2021) and guidance has been developed for mink farms (USDA 2020; Molenaar et al. 2020). Specific OIE guidelines have been produced for different taxa (great apes, bats, felids, mustelids) to prevent spillover (oie.int/ ...
... The virus can invade various body systems and lead to organ dysfunction (El-Sayed et al. 2021a, El-Sayed et al. 2021b. The wide host range of SARS-CoV-2 and its geographical distributions raised the alarms of a panzootic accompanying the actual pandemic situation (Enserink 2020, Manes et al. 2020, WHO report 2020, James Gorman 2020. For the pandemic control, several COVID-19 vaccines are now commercially available to prevent further spread of the disease among humans (CDC 2019, Creech et al. 2021) (Table 5). ...
the paper is available under:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34523089/
and
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-16415-8
... This paper does not support the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between animals in the wild, leaving the human-animal interface (possibly through wastewaters) as a potential interspecies transmission mechanism in our cases. Clearly, since SARS-CoV-2 may possess panzootic potential [48,49] owing to its range of potential hosts and its ability to cross species barriers, COVID-19 should be approached on the basis of the One Health concept to avoid transmission at the human/animal interface [50]. ...
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causal agent of COVID-19, is considered a pathogen of animal origin that is mainly transmitted from human to human. Several animal species can be naturally or experimentally infected by SARS-CoV-2, with compelling evidence that mink is highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Human-to-mink infection cases have been reported and there are also suggestions that mink-to-human infection occurs. Mink infections have been reported to date only on fur farms, except for one infected free- ranging wild mink near a Utah (USA) fur farm, which suggests a transmission pathway from farms to wild mink. We now report the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in 2 of 13 feral dark brown American mink (Neovison vison) trapped in the Valencian Community (Eastern Spain), during an invasive species trapping campaign. They were trapped in riverbeds in sparsely inhabited rural areas known to harbor self-sustained feral mink populations. The closest fur farm is about 20 km away. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected by two-step RT-PCR in these animals’ mesenteric lymph nodes and was confirmed by sequencing a 397-nucleotide amplified region of the S gene, yielding identical sequences in both animals. A molecular phylogenetic analysis was run on this sequence, which was found to correspond to the consensus SARS-CoV-2 sequence from Wuhan. Our findings appear to represent the first example of SARS-CoV-2 acquired in the wild by feral mink in self-sustained populations.
... Studies have in fact shown that domestic ferrets have an extremely low resistance to SARS-CoV-2 infection . In addition, some outbreaks had been reported in European minks (Mustela vison) farms, where there were evidences that the virus was transmitted to the animals through infected human workers on the farm (Manes et al., 2020). For this reason, in various European countries such Denmark, Spain or Italy some restriction to mink's farms were emanated, stopping the activity and forcing the suppression of all specimens in the event of a positive finding. ...
Aquatic animals have been maintained by humans in confined spaces since very ancient times. In the last century both, the need to implement seafood productions and the popularity of aquatic exhibits, have facilitated professional scientific development of live fish management techniques. In this context, aquatic animal welfare has therefore become an important standpoint to guarantee good and safe quality of seafood and sustainable aquaria and zoological collections. At the end of 2019, SARS-CoV-2 severely affected human health in China and shortly became pandemic, hence influencing globally most types of businesses. All animal industries fully dependent on human daily activities and resources, have been severely impacted by human distancing and isolation protocols. During this world crisis, extensive changes in aquarium management procedures had to be applied. Specific contingency plans were developed to protect humans and to guarantee animal care, in order to avoid the risk for aquaria fading away.
... Mink were the first extensively farmed species to be affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, indicating that mustelids, including mink and ferrets, are more sensitive to SARS-CoV-2 than other animals (Manes et al., 2020). Several mink farms in The Netherlands, Denmark, USA, and Spain all reported infection cases (Jo et al., 2020;Mahdy et al., 2020;Opriessnig and Huang, 2020;Oude Munnink et al., 2021), indicating mink-to-mink and mink-to-human (Netherlands, Denmark) transmission. ...
The outbreak of COVID-19, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, rapidly spread to create a global pandemic and has continued to spread across hosts from humans to animals, transmitting particularly effectively in mink. How SARS-CoV-2 evolves in animals and humans and the differences in the separate evolutionary processes remain unclear. We analyzed the composition and codon usage bias of SARS-CoV-2 in infected humans and animals. Compared with other animals, SARS-CoV-2 in mink had the most substitutions. The substitutions of cytidine in SARS-CoV-2 in mink account for nearly 50% of the substitutions, while those in other animals represent only 30% of the substitutions. The incidence of adenine transversion in SARS-CoV-2 in other animals is threefold higher than that in mink-CoV (the SARS-CoV-2 virus in mink). A synonymous codon usage analysis showed that SARS-CoV-2 is optimized to adapt in the animals in which it is currently reported, and all of the animals showed decreased adaptability relative to that of humans, except for mink. A binding affinity analysis indicated that the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 variant in mink showed a greater preference for binding with the mink receptor ACE2 than with the human receptor, especially as the mutation Y453F and F486L in mink-CoV lead to improvement of binding affinity for mink receptor. Our study focuses on the divergence of SARS-CoV-2 genome composition and codon usage in humans and animals, indicating possible natural selection and current host adaptation.
... This paper does not support the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between animals in the wild, leaving the human-animal interface (possibly through wastewaters) as a potential interspecies transmission mechanism in our cases. Clearly, since SARS-CoV-2 may possess panzootic potential [48,49] owing to its range of potential hosts and its ability to cross species barriers, COVID-19 should be approached on the basis of the One Health concept to avoid transmission at the human/animal interface [50]. ...
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the etiological agent of COVID-19 , is considered a pathogen with animal origin, mainly transmitted human to human. It has been experimentally and naturally demonstrated that several animals can be infected by SARS-CoV-2. There are strong evidences that minks are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection, since several cases of human to mink infection have been reported, and it has been suggested mink to human infection exists, which so far it is the most reliable example of a zoonotic event of COVID-19 . However, all these cases reported are form mink farms, with the exception of one case in the USA in which the virus was detected in a mink located in the wild, but it was demonstrated that the animal was infected on a fur farm. In the present work, we have detected SARS-CoV-2 RNA in two wild American minks (Neovison vison) in Valencian Community (Eastern Spain) during invasive species trapping campaigns. The animals were trapped from areas known for harbouring self-sustained populations, far away from the nearest fur farm. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in mesenteric lymph nodes samples by RT-PCR. A partial region of the Spike protein gene was amplified and sequence obtaining a 397 nt size sequence. Phylogenetic analysis shown that both sequences were identical to the consensus variant SARS CoV-2 sequence (from Wuhan). This research describes the first infection report of a true wild American mink not related to infected fur farms or direct contact with humans, which is believed to be the first example of wild animals in which SARS-CoV-2 has been detected.
... COVID-19 is a human pandemic that potentially represents a risk for domestic animals. Previous studies have demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 replicates poorly in dogs, chickens and ducks, while cats, ferrets, minks, cattle and sheep are permissive to infection [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. All such types of uncertainty have discouraged farmers from continuing the production of livestock which severely affected the livelihood of farmers and the economy of the country. ...
COVID-19 and its accompanying effects have severely affected an estimated 0.3 million dairy farms and 65 -70 thousand commercial poultry farms in Bangladesh. Many of them closed down or halted productions due to the burden of continuous losses. Reports showed that about 12 to 15 million liters of milk have remained unsold, which has caused a daily loss of 570 million Bangladeshi Taka (6.7 million USD) in the dairy sector only. Furthermore, the poultry sector has also encountered a loss of a minimum of 115 billion Bangladeshi Taka (1.35 billion USD) within just two weeks from March 20 to April 4, 2020. The situation might accelerate the arising food crisis due to the collapse of the livestock sector during the COVID-19 pandemic and turn it into a humanitarian catastrophe. Hence, the government should retaliate through the provision of financial assistance to livestock farmers, and the proclamation of emergency veterinary services on the earliest basis. In addition to that, the government could develop long-term, sustainable strategies and projects through multi-sectoral engagement to ensure further capacity building of farmers and other stakeholders.
... Mustelids are a family of mammals belonging to the order of carnivores comprising around 60 species worldwide. Mustelids are distributed both in semi-aquatic (marine and freshwater) and terrestrial habitats (Manes et al., 2020). ...
American mink and ferret are highly susceptible to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but no information is available for other mustelid species. SARS-CoV-2 spreads very efficiently within mink farms once introduced, by direct and indirect contact, high within-farm animal density increases the chance for transmission. Between-farm spread is likely to occur once SARS-CoV-2 is introduced, short distance between SARS-CoV-2 positive farms is a risk factor. As of 29 January 2021, SARS-CoV-2 virus has been reported in 400 mink farms in eight countries in the European Union. In most cases, the likely introduction of SARS-CoV-2 infection into farms was infected humans. Human health can be at risk by mink-related variant viruses, which can establish circulation in the community, but so far these have not shown to be more transmissible or causing more severe impact compared with other circulating SARS-CoV-2. Concerning animal health risk posed by SARS-CoV-2 infection the animal species that may be included in monitoring plans are American mink, ferrets, cats, raccoon dogs, white-tailed deer and Rhinolophidae bats. All mink farms should be considered at risk of infection; therefore, the monitoring objective should be early detection. This includes passive monitoring (in place in the whole territory of all countries where animals susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 are bred) but also active monitoring by regular testing. First, frequent testing of farm personnel and all people in contact with the animals is recommended. Furthermore randomly selected animals (dead or sick animals should be included) should be tested using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), ideally at weekly intervals (i.e. design prevalence approximately 5% in each epidemiological unit, to be assessed case by case). Suspected animals (dead or with clinical signs and a minimum five animals) should be tested for confirmation of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Positive samples from each farm should be sequenced to monitor virus evolution and results publicly shared.
... Most recently, a wild mink who had contracted the virus, apparently from contact with farmed mink, was identified in Utah, USA -the first free-ranging, native wild animal confirmed with SARS-CoV-2 (https://www.koin.com/news/wild-mink-in-utah-tests-positive-for-sars-cov-2/). This finding indicates the potential for wild mustelids to become a permanent reservoir of infection for other animal species (Manes et al., 2020), as occurred with rabies in raccoons and skunks (Rupprecht et al. 1995). Other animal species in the case of SARS-CoV-2 would include cervids because white-tailed deer have been identified by experimental infection as a susceptible wild animal species to the virus (Palmer et al., 2021). ...
Outbreaks of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) have been reported in workers in fish farms and fish processing plants arising from person-to-person transmission, raising concerns about aquatic animal food products' safety. A better understanding of such incidents is important for the aquaculture industry's sustainability, particularly with the global trade in fresh and frozen aquatic animal food products where contaminating virus could survive for some time. Despite a plethora of COVID-19-related scientific publications, there is a lack of reports on the risk of contact with aquatic food animal species or their products. This review aimed to examine the potential for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) contamination and the potential transmission via aquatic food animals or their products and wastewater effluents. The extracellular viability of SARS-CoV-2 and how the virus is spread are reviewed, supporting the understanding that contaminated cold-chain food sources may introduce SAR-CoV-2 via food imports although the virus is unlikely to infect humans through consumption of aquatic food animals or their products or drinking water; i.e., SARS-CoV-2 is not a foodborne virus and should not be managed as such but instead through strong, multifaceted public health interventions including physical distancing, rapid contact tracing, and testing, enhanced hand and respiratory hygiene, frequent disinfection of high-touch surfaces, isolation of infected workers and their contacts, as well as enhanced screening protocols for international seafood trade.
... Belette, loutre, blaireau, putois font partie de cette famille de prédateurs aux pattes courtes et au corps allongé, qui compte une soixantaine d'espèces majoritairement sauvages, répandues dans des habitats divers et pour certaines acclimatées au milieu urbain. Il est donc préconisé donc une surveillance accrue des populations non domestiques, qui pourraient faire office de réservoir comme cela est suspecté avec les chauves-souris qui comptent, elles, 1200 espèces différentes [3,6,13]. ...
Résumé
En dehors des populations humaines, le SARS-Cov-2 touche principalement les élevages de visons, dans lesquels le virus mute rapidement et semble pouvoir se re-transmettre à l’homme. Autre mustélidé, le furet apparaît comme modèle d’étude de la Covid-19. Les animaux domestiques, pour certains sensibles, semblent peu à risque, mais de nombreuses recherches sont encore nécessaires pour évaluer les capacités de transmission à l’homme et l’existence de potentielles espèces réservoirs chez les animaux sauvages.
... Further, this pandemic overlies other epidemics of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cancer, obesity and chronic respiratory diseases, supporting a novel proposal for the term "syndemic" [1]. But there is more: this virus is also spilling into animal populations such as mustelids which could become reservoirs of infection, thus potentially allowing the evolution of many host-adapted lineages [2]. This observation leads us to consider another term which unveils another unique feature: its panzootic nature [3]. ...
... A human pandemic poses also risks for domestic animals, particularly given their close contacts with humans, and they potentially act as an additional spill-over source for human infection Patterson et al., 2020). Previous studies have shown that SARS-CoV-2 replicates poorly in dogs, chickens and ducks, while cats, ferrets, and minks are highly permissive to infection (Enserink, 2020;Shi et al., 2020;Manes et al., 2020;Molenaar et al., 2020;Oreshkova et al., 2020;Schlottau et al., 2020;Gaudreault et al., 2020). Additionally, by previous analysis, it was suggested that SARS-CoV-2 may efficiently bind to the ACE2 moieties of different animal species (Damas et al., 2020;Zhai et al., 2020). ...
There is strong evidence that severe acute respiratory syndrome 2 virus (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, originated from an animal reservoir. However, the exact mechanisms of emergence, the host species involved, and the risk to domestic and agricultural animals are largely unknown. Some domestic animal species, including cats, ferrets, and minks, have been demonstrated to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection, while others, such as pigs and chickens, are not. Importantly, the susceptibility of ruminants to SARS-CoV-2 is unknown, even though they often live in close proximity to humans. We investigated the replication and tissue tropism of two different SARS-CoV-2 isolates in the respiratory tract of three farm animal species-cattle, sheep, and pigs-using respiratory ex vivo organ cultures (EVOCs). We demonstrate that the respiratory tissues of cattle and sheep, but not of pigs, sustain viral replication in vitro of both isolates and that SARS-CoV-2 is associated to ACE2-expressing cells of the respiratory tract of both ruminant species. Intriguingly, a SARS-CoV-2 isolate containing an amino acid substitution at site 614 of the spike protein (mutation D614G) replicated at higher magnitude in ex vivo tissues of both ruminant species, supporting previous results obtained using human cells. These results suggest that additional in vivo experiments involving several ruminant species are warranted to determine their potential role in the epidemiology of this virus.
... Minks are the first intensively farmed species to be affected by the COVID-19 outbreak indicating a higher susceptibility of mustelids to SARS-CoV-2 (64). Several mink farms have been attacked by SARS-CoV-2 at first in the Netherlands, then in Denmark, USA, and Spain (23,65,66). ...
Many universities and colleges worldwide suspended classroom teaching due to the novel coronavirus pandemic and switched to online teaching. The current cross-sectional study was carried out to analyze the impact of lockdown due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the academic performance of veterinary medical students and researchers. Veterinary medical students and researchers were invited to answer an online google form questionnaire. A total of 1398 participants were from 92 different countries answered the questionnaire with response rate of 94.52%. The data showed that COVID-19 pandemic lockdown affected the academic performance of most participants (96.7%) with varying degrees. The mean evaluation scores for the online education in general was 5.06 ± 2.43 while that for the practical parts was 3.62± 2.56. Although online education provides an opportunity for self-study. The main challenge online education faces in veterinary medical science is how to give practical lessons. Since most of the subjects are practical; therefore, it is not easy to learn it online. Students think that it is difficult to fulfill the veterinary competencies only with online education system. Online education can be improved by making it more interactive, showing medical procedures in real situations, giving concise information, and providing 3D virtual tools to mimic the real situation.
... Minks are the first intensively farmed species to be affected by the COVID-19 outbreak indicating a higher susceptibility of mustelids to SARS-CoV-2 (64). Several mink farms have been attacked by SARS-CoV-2 at first in the Netherlands, then in Denmark, USA, and Spain (23,65,66). ...
The current cross-sectional study was carried out to analyze the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on the academic performance of veterinary medical students and researchers. An online google form questionnaire was used to invite veterinary students and researchers to answer the questionnaire. A total of 807 participants were from 86 different countries answered the questionnaire with an overall response rate of 94.1%. The participants were 50.1% males and 49.9% females. The age of participants ranged from 17 to 51 years, and the majority of them (85.0%) were undergraduate students while postgraduate students comprised 15.0%. The data showed that the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown affected the academic performance of most participants (96.5%) with varying degrees. The mean evaluation scores for the online education, in general, was 4.9 ± 2.4 while that for the practical parts was 3.7± 2.6. About 60.7% of participants evaluated the online learning in general with 1-5 of 10 points, while 77.9% of participants evaluated the online learning in practical lessons with 1-5 of 10 points. Although online education provides an opportunity for self-study. The main challenge online education faces in veterinary medical science is how to give practical lessons. Since most of the subjects are practical; therefore, it is not easy to learn it online. Students think that it is difficult to fulfill the veterinary competencies only with the online education system. Online education can be improved by making it more interactive, showing medical procedures in real situations, giving concise information, and providing 3D virtual tools to mimic the real situation.
... Minks are the first intensively farmed species to be affected by the COVID-19 outbreak indicating a higher susceptibility of mustelids to SARS-CoV-2 (64). Several mink farms have been attacked by SARS-CoV-2 at first in the Netherlands, then in Denmark, USA, and Spain (23,65,66). ...
A novel coronavirus has been reported as the causative pathogen of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak Wuhan city, Hubei Province, China in December 2019. Due to the rapid spreading of COVID-19 worldwide, it has been announced as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). Hospitalized patients in Wuhan are associated with the Huanan seafood wholesale market where live animals, such as poultry, bats, snakes, frogs, rabbits, marmots, and hedgehogs are sold in that market which suggests possible zoonotic infection. Therefore, it is essential to identify the potential animal reservoir, and the possibility of infection for other animal species. This short review aims to provide an overview of the relation between SARS‐CoV‐2 and animals.
Zoonoses não se processam em um único sentido na dinâmica de infecção, de animais para humanos. Assim como outras doenças, já vem sendo demonstrada a capacidade de infecção de animais pelo SARS-CoV-2 a partir do contato com humanos. O objetivo desse trabalho é realizar uma revisão narrativa, através da análise da literatura científica atual, quanto à possibilidade de zoonose e zoonose reversa do SARS-CoV-2 sob a perspectiva de Saúde Única e possíveis implicações para o futuro da evolução do vírus. Pesquisas recentes apontam que o vírus mostrou potencial de zoonose reversa, infectando mamíferos em diversas partes do planeta. Mustelídeos, hamsters, felinos e primatas do velho mundo são os animais que apresentaram maior susceptibilidade ao SARS-CoV-2. A zoonose reversa do SARS-CoV-2 favoreceu o surgimento de variantes cujas mutações mostraram-se adaptadas às diversas características fisiológicas particulares das espécies animais afetadas, com capacidade de retorno ao ser humano. O SARS-CoV-2 provavelmente será persistente entre mamíferos após a onda pandêmica que afetou a humanidade. Processos de mitigação da zoonose e zoonose reversa do SARS-CoV-2 sob a perspectiva da Saúde Única requerem ações em três níveis: ambiente humano, relações entre humanos e animais domésticos ou cativos, e vigilância e controle do vírus circulante entre animais de vida livre.
Spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) B.1.1.529 (Omicron) variant, which led to increased global hospitalizations for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19), generated concern about immune evasion and the duration of protection from vaccines, and undermined humanity's confidence in ending the epidemic. The sudden mutation and origin of Omicron is even more of a mystery. The article highlights the virological characteristics and possible origins of Omicron and the global threats and challenges it poses, as well as strategies to deal with it. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Aim. Analyse available literature data about the possibility of coronavirus infection with and the severity of the course of infection in various animal species in order to evaluate the significance of this possibility in the context of preservation of the well‐being of both wild and domestic animals.Discussion. SARS‐CoV‐2 is thought to have originated from bat CoV. The virus enters the cell by binding to the ACE2 receptor, the affinity for which differs depending on the animal species. Infected animals show viral RNA and may show clinical symptoms. It is known that the virus originated from some animals, while others may be carriers. Moreover, it can be that wild as well as domestic and farm animals are in close contact with humans. Therefore, it is advisable to conduct a study of the degree of threat to humans associated with the persistence of the virus in animal communities.Conclusion. There is ample literature on the possibility of infection in various animals. However, it is not enough to fully understand how significant is the role that animals can play in the spread of coronavirus infection among humans and how much harm it can bring to themselves.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), resulted in an ongoing pandemic with millions of deaths worldwide. Infection of humans can be asymptomatic or result in fever, fatigue, dry cough, dyspnea, and acute respiratory distress syndrome with multiorgan failure in severe cases. The pathogenesis of COVID-19 is not fully understood, and various models employing different species are currently applied. Ferrets can be infected with SARS-CoV-2 and efficiently transmit the virus to contact animals. In contrast to hamsters, ferrets usually show mild disease and viral replication restricted to the upper airways. Most reports have used the intranasal inoculation route, while the intratracheal infection model is not well characterized. Herein, we present clinical, virological, and pathological data from young ferrets intratracheally inoculated with SARS-CoV-2. Infected animals showed no significant clinical signs, and had transient infection with peak viral RNA loads at 4 days postinfection, mild to moderate rhinitis, and pulmonary endothelialitis/vasculitis. Viral antigen was exclusively found in the respiratory epithelium of the nasal cavity, indicating a particular tropism for cells in this location. Viral antigen was associated with epithelial damage and influx of inflammatory cells, including activated neutrophils releasing neutrophil extracellular traps. Scanning electron microscopy of the nasal respiratory mucosa revealed loss of cilia, shedding, and rupture of epithelial cells. The currently established ferret SARS-CoV-2 infection models are comparatively discussed with SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis in mink, and the advantages and disadvantages of both species as research models for zoonotic betacoronaviruses are highlighted.
Different iterations of genomics in therapeutics are applied proactively and reactively. (Bio)Pharmaceuticals, electroceuticals, and other amenities must be administered properly in terms of patient (safety), pathogen (efficiency), and dosage, while timing and priorities in mass distribution are of cardinal importance. At least two genomes must be scanned to inform the above and possibly more, plus the exogenome and the entire infectome in the public health context. In addition, other biomarkers of the host should be scanned for risk estimates on infection so as to prioritize prophylaxis. Actually, the volume of genomic information needed may be very large, even for the Big Data scale, and distributed architectures of cognitive elements, as in diverse databases and with background scans during low-intensity periods, may assist in molding a sustainable and effective response framework.
The origin of SARS-CoV-2 is still an unresolved mystery. In this study, we systematically reviewed the main research progress of wild animals carrying virus highly homologous to SARS-CoV-2 and analyzed the natural foci characteristics of SARS-CoV-2. The complexity of SARS-CoV-2 origin in wild animals and the possibility of SARS-CoV-2 long-term existence in human populations are also discussed. The joint investigation of corona virus carried by wildlife, as well as the ecology and patho-ecology of bats and other wildlife, are key measures to further clarify the characteristics of natural foci of SARS-CoV-2 and actively defend against future outbreaks of emerging zoonotic diseases.
In December 2019, several cases of pneumonia caused by a novel Coronavirus, later identified as SARS-CoV-2, were detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Due to its rapid, worldwide spread, on 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization declared a pandemic state. Since this new virus is genetically similar to the coronaviruses of bats, it was thought to have a zoonotic origin. Within a year of the appearance of SARS-CoV-2, several cases of infection were also reported in animals, suggesting animal-to-human and animal-to-animal transmission within mammals. Natural infection has been found in both companion and captive animals such as lions, tigers and gorillas. Among farm animals, the only ones found to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection so far are minks. Experimental infections have documented the susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 of several animal species, such as humanized mice, hamsters, cats, dogs, ferrets, racoon dogs, cattle and non-human primates. Experimental infections are crucial for both elucidation of the role of animals in transmission and development of appropriate animal models for pathogenesis and therapy studies. This review aims to update the knowledge on natural and experimental SARS-CoV-2 infections in animals.
Skunks and raccoons were intranasally inoculated or indirectly exposed to SARS-CoV-2. Both species are susceptible to infection; however, the lack of, and low quantity of infectious virus shed by raccoons and skunks, respectively, and lack of cage mate transmission in both species, suggest that neither species are competent SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs.
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Experimental SARS-CoV-2 inoculation of North American raccoons and striped skunks showed susceptibility to infection, but transient, low-level shedding suggests that neither species is likely to be a competent natural reservoir.
The epidemiology of rabies in the United States has changed substantially during the last half century, as the source of the disease has changed from domesticated animals to wildlife, principally raccoons, skunks, foxes, and bats. Moreover, the changes observed among affected wildlife populations have not occurred without human influence. Rather, human attraction to the recreational and economic resources provided by wildlife has contributed to the reemergence of rabies as a major zoonosis. Although human deaths caused by rabies have declined recently to an average of one or two per year, the estimated costs associated with the decrease in deaths amount to hundreds of millions of dollars annually. In future efforts to control rabies harbored by free-ranging animal reservoirs, public health professionals will have to apply imaginative, safe, and cost-effective solutions to this age-old malady in addition to using traditional measures.
This review examines the current state of knowledge of aspects of tuberculosis in the badger. The gross pathology and pathogenesis are elaborated as well as the immune mechanism, diagnosis of infection and excretion and viability of infected products. The epidemiology in badgers is considered, as is the significance of infection in this species for other wildlife species as well as domestic animals sharing the same habitat. Trials of the effects of the removal of badgers on the occurrence of tuberculosis in cattle are summarised. It is concluded that badgers are well adapted as the primary host of bovine tuberculosis in parts of Britain and much of Ireland.
Mustelidae. In Fowler's zoo and wild animal medicine
- G V Kollias
- J Fernandez-Moran
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Fowler's zoo and wild animal medicine. (R.E. Miller &
M.E. Fowler, eds). Elsevier, 8, 476-491.