1. SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Dogs and Cats from Southern Germany and Northern Italy during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Author
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Klaus, Julia, Zini, Eric, Hartmann, Katrin, Egberink, Herman, Kipar, Anja, Bergmann, Michèle, Palizzotto, Carlo, Zhao, Shan, Rossi, Francesco, Franco, Vittoria, Porporato, Federico, Hofmann-Lehmann, Regina, Meli, Marina L, Klinische infectiologie en microb. lab., Virologie, dI&I I&I-1, dI&I I&I-4, Klinische infectiologie en microb. lab., Virologie, dI&I I&I-1, dI&I I&I-4, University of Zurich, and Klaus, Julia
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Male ,Viral/genetics ,10253 Department of Small Animals ,COVID-19/diagnosis ,Oropharynx ,Antibody ,Domestic animals ,One health ,Prevalence ,RT-qPCR ,SARS-CoV-2 ,Serology ,Surveillance ,Zoonosis ,Animals ,COVID-19 ,Cat Diseases ,Cats ,Dog Diseases ,Dogs ,Female ,Germany ,Italy ,Pandemics ,RNA, Viral ,medicine.disease_cause ,law.invention ,Oropharynx/virology ,0403 veterinary science ,Cat Diseases/diagnosis ,law ,Pandemic ,Viral ,11434 Center for Clinical Studies ,Polymerase chain reaction ,Coronavirus ,Dog Diseases/diagnosis ,CATS ,Transmission (medicine) ,Communication ,04 agricultural and veterinary sciences ,QR1-502 ,RNA, Viral/genetics ,Infectious Diseases ,11404 Department of Clinical Diagnostics and Services ,Italy/epidemiology ,040301 veterinary sciences ,Germany/epidemiology ,10184 Institute of Veterinary Pathology ,Context (language use) ,610 Medicine & health ,Microbiology ,03 medical and health sciences ,SARS-CoV-2/genetics ,Virology ,medicine ,business.industry ,2725 Infectious Diseases ,medicine.disease ,030104 developmental biology ,2406 Virology ,RNA ,business - Abstract
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people globally since its first detection in late 2019. Besides humans, cats and, to some extent, dogs were shown to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, highlighting the need for surveillance in a One Health context. Seven veterinary clinics from regions with high incidences of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were recruited during the early pandemic (March to July 2020) for the screening of patients. A total of 2257 oropharyngeal and nasal swab specimen from 877 dogs and 260 cats (including 18 animals from COVID-19-affected households and 92 animals with signs of respiratory disease) were analyzed for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA using reverse transcriptase real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) targeting the viral envelope (E) and RNA dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) genes. One oropharyngeal swab from an Italian cat, living in a COVID-19-affected household in Piedmont, tested positive in RT-qPCR (1/260; 0.38%, 95% CI: 0.01–2.1%), and SARS-CoV-2 infection of the animal was serologically confirmed six months later. One oropharyngeal swab from a dog was potentially positive (1/877; 0.1%, 95% CI: 0.002–0.63%), but the result was not confirmed in a reference laboratory. Analyses of convenience sera from 118 animals identified one dog (1/94; 1.1%; 95% CI: 0.02–5.7%) from Lombardy, but no cats (0/24), as positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) antibodies and neutralizing activity. These findings support the hypothesis that the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pet cat and dog populations, and hence, the risk of zoonotic transmission to veterinary staff, was low during the first wave of the pandemic, even in hotspot areas.
- Published
- 2021