SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity in Urban Population of Wild Fallow Deer, Dublin, Ireland, 2020-2022.
Emerg Infect Dis
; 30(8): 1609-1620, 2024 Aug.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39043403
ABSTRACT
SARS-CoV-2 can infect wildlife, and SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern might expand into novel animal reservoirs, potentially by reverse zoonosis. White-tailed deer and mule deer of North America are the only deer species in which SARS-CoV-2 has been documented, raising the question of whether other reservoir species exist. We report cases of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity in a fallow deer population located in Dublin, Ireland. Sampled deer were seronegative in 2020 when the Alpha variant was circulating in humans, 1 deer was seropositive for the Delta variant in 2021, and 12/21 (57%) sampled deer were seropositive for the Omicron variant in 2022, suggesting host tropism expansion as new variants emerged in humans. Omicron BA.1 was capable of infecting fallow deer lung type-2 pneumocytes and type-1-like pneumocytes or endothelial cells ex vivo. Ongoing surveillance to identify novel SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs is needed to prevent public health risks during human-animal interactions in periurban settings.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Deer
/
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Limits:
Animals
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Journal:
Emerg Infect Dis
Journal subject:
DOENCAS TRANSMISSIVEIS
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Country of publication:
United States