Despite the probable zoonotic origin of SARS-CoV-2, only limited research efforts have been made to understand the role of companion animals in SARS-CoV-2 epidemiology. According to recent serological prevalence studies, human-to-companion animal transmission is quite frequent, which led us to consider that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission from animal to human, albeit negligible in the present context, may have been underestimated. In this study, we provide the results of a prospective survey that was conducted to evaluate the SARS-CoV-2 isolation rate by qRT-PCR in dogs and cats with different exposure risks and clinical statuses. From April 2020 to April 2021, we analyzed 367 samples and investigated the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA using qRT-PCR. Only four animals tested positive, all of them being cats. Three cats were asymptomatic and one presented a coryza-like syndrome. We describe in detail the infection in two cats and the associated clinical characteristics. Importantly, we obtained SARS-CoV-2 genomes from one infected animal and characterized them as Alpha variants. This represents the first identification of the SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant in an infected animal in France.
【저자키워드】 SARS-CoV-2, Sequencing, variants, Prevalence, zoonosis, 【초록키워드】 Clinical characteristics, qRT-PCR, Infection, risk, Transmission, SARS-CoV-2 transmission, Asymptomatic, cats, SARS-CoV-2 genome, animal, Research, Isolation, France, Alpha, SARS-CoV-2 RNA, Alpha variant, serological, SARS-CoV-2 epidemiology, SARS-CoV-2 genomes, syndrome, effort, positive, zoonotic origin, tested, analyzed, evaluate, investigated, conducted, characterized, the SARS-CoV-2, 【제목키워드】 detection, dog, Prospective, shedding, exposure, confirmation, report,