OmniVira

Exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus).

Javier Caballero Gómez1,2,3 David Cano-Terriza1,4 Joaquim Segalés5,6 Júlia Vergara-Alert5,7 Irene Zorrilla8 Teresa Del Rey8 Jorge Paniagua9 Moisés Gonzálvez1,10 Leira Fernández-Bastit5,7 Fernando Nájera11,12,13 Juan I Montoya-Oliver14 Javier Salcedo15 Ignacio García-Bocanegra1,3
Affiliations 15 institutions
  1. Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Grupo de Investigación en Sanidad Animal y Zoonosis (GISAZ), UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
  2. Grupo de Virología Clínica y Zoonosis, Unidad de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto Maimónides de Investigación Biomédica de Córdoba (IMIBIC), Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
  3. CIBERINFEC, ISCIII - CIBER de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain.
  4. CIBERINFEC, ISCIII - CIBER de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: [email protected].
  5. Unitat mixta d'Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal. Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Bellaterra, Cataluña, Spain
  6. Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Spain.
  7. IRTA, Programa de Sanitat Animal, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Bellaterra 08193 Barcelona, Spain.
  8. Centro de Análisis y Diagnóstico de la Fauna Silvestre, Agencia de Medio Ambiente y Agua de Andalucía, Consejería de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul de la Junta de Andalucía, Málaga, Spain.
  9. Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Grupo de Investigación en Sanidad Animal y Zoonosis (GISAZ), UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain.
  10. Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Regional "Campus Mare Nostrum", Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain.
  11. Departamento de Fisiología Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  12. Asistencia Técnica de la Dirección General del Medio Natural y Desarrollo Sostenible de la Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, Spain
  13. Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Health Center, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States.
  14. Organismo Autónomo Parques Nacionales (OAPN). Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico, Madrid, Spain.
  15. Consejería de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul, Junta de Andalucía, Sevilla, Spain.
PMID38280305 DOI10.1016/j.vetmic.2024.110001 Year2024 Journal Veterinary microbiology Vet Microbiol Languageeng Statusppublish

Abstract

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an emerging zoonotic virus of public and animal health concern, of which felids have been suggested as potential reservoirs. Although SARS-CoV-2 exposure has been detected in domestic and wild captive animals belonging to Felidae family, surveillance has not been carried out in free-ranging wild felids so far. The aim of the present study was to assess SARS-CoV-2 exposure in the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus), the most endangered felid in the world. Between 2019 and 2022, we conducted a seroepidemiological study of SARS-CoV-2 in 276 free-ranging and captive Iberian lynxes. Our results evidenced limited (0.4%; 95%CI: 0.0-1.1) but not negligible exposure to this emerging virus in this endangered felid species, increasing the SARS-CoV-2 host range. The circulation of this virus in wildlife evidences the need of integrated European wildlife monitoring.

Supporting text Virus Host Location
Animal health 4 Emerging zoonoses 1 Iberian lynx 2 SARS-CoV-2 550 Surveillance 60 COVID-19 425 Lynx 7 Animals 1948 Animals, Wild 187 Endangered Species 2 SARS-CoV-2 453

Evidence records

1 total
Zoonotic Surveillance
1 records · 1 evidence types
Evidence type Serological Evidence
1 records
OVE7745 Serological Evidence
Key finding

Serological testing detected SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in 0.4% of free-ranging and captive Iberian lynxes sampled between 2019 and 2022.

Virus
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Host
Iberian lynx Lynx pardinus Natural host
Location
Not specified
Supporting text

Between 2019 and 2022, we conducted a seroepidemiological study of SARS-CoV-2 in 276 free-ranging and captive Iberian lynxes. Our results evidenced limited (0.4%; 95%CI: 0.0-1.1) but not negligible exposure to this emerging virus in this endangered felid species, increasing the SARS-CoV-2 host range.

Method
serological testing | seroepidemiological study
Sample type
serum