ABSTRACT Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for a global pandemic that has had significant impacts on human health and economies worldwide. SARS-CoV-2 is highly transmissible and the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 in humans. A wide range of animal species have also been shown to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 by experimental and/or natural infections. Sheep are a commonly farmed domestic ruminant that have not been thoroughly investigated for their susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, we performed in vitro and in vivo studies which consisted of infection of ruminant-derived cells and experimental challenge of sheep to investigate their susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2. Our results showed that sheep-derived kidney cells support SARS-CoV-2 replication. Furthermore, the experimental challenge of sheep demonstrated limited infection with viral RNA shed in nasal and oral swabs at 1 and 3-days post challenge (DPC); viral RNA was also detected in the respiratory tract and lymphoid tissues at 4 and 8 DPC. Sero-reactivity was observed in some of the principal infected sheep but not the contact sentinels, indicating that transmission to co-mingled naïve sheep was not highly efficient; however, viral RNA was detected in respiratory tract tissues of sentinel animals at 21 DPC. Furthermore, we used a challenge inoculum consisting of a mixture of two SARS-CoV-2 isolates, representatives of the ancestral lineage A and the B.1.1.7-like alpha variant of concern, to study competition of the two virus strains. Our results indicate that sheep show low susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and that the alpha variant outcompeted the lineage A strain.
【저자키워드】 SARS-CoV-2, susceptibility, Transmission, Co-infection, sheep, ovine, ruminant, 【초록키워드】 coronavirus disease, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, Coronavirus disease 2019, coronavirus, SARS-COV-2 infection, variant, Infection, nasal, in vitro, severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus, kidney, global pandemic, Health, infections, Viral, B.1.1.7, humans, Impact, Lineage, Alpha, Viral RNA, respiratory tract, Alpha variant, respiratory, in vivo, sheep, SARS-CoV-2 replication, strain, Contact, in some, Support, acute respiratory syndrome, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, mixture, naïve, SARS-CoV-2 isolates, competition, oral swab, nasal and oral swabs, respiratory tract tissues, two virus strains, susceptible, Cell, Lymphoid tissue, shown, responsible, performed, investigated, demonstrated, respiratory tract tissue, 【제목키워드】 variant,