학술논문
Molecular surveillance of potential SARS-CoV-2 reservoir hosts in wildlife rehabilitation centers
Document Type
article
Author
Juan Mena; Christian Hidalgo; Daniela Estay-Olea; Nicole Sallaberry-Pincheira; Antonella Bacigalupo; André V. Rubio; Diego Peñaloza; Carolina Sánchez; Javiera Gómez-Adaros; Valeria Olmos; Javier Cabello; Kendra Ivelic; María José Abarca; Diego Ramírez-Álvarez; Marisol Torregrosa Rocabado; Natalia Durán Castro; Martina Carreño; Gabriela Gómez; Pedro E. Cattan; Galia Ramírez-Toloza; Sofía Robbiano; Carla Marchese; Eduardo Raffo; Paulina Stowhas; Gonzalo Medina-Vogel; Carlos Landaeta-Aqueveque; René Ortega; Etienne Waleckx; Daniel Gónzalez-Acuña; Gemma Rojo
Source
Veterinary Quarterly, Vol 43, Iss 1, Pp 1-10 (2023)
Subject
Language
English
ISSN
01652176
1875-5941
0165-2176
1875-5941
0165-2176
Abstract
AbstractBackground The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection, has become the most devastating zoonotic event in recent times, with negative impacts on both human and animal welfare as well as on the global economy. Although SARS-CoV-2 is considered a human virus, it likely emerged from animals, and it can infect both domestic and wild animals. This constitutes a risk for human and animal health including wildlife with evidence of SARS-CoV-2 horizontal transmission back and forth between humans and wild animals.Aim Molecular surveillance in different wildlife rehabilitation centers and wildlife associated institutions in Chile, which are critical points of animal-human interaction and wildlife conservation, especially since the aim of wildlife rehabilitation centers is to reintroduce animals to their original habitat.Materials and Methods The survey was conducted in six WRCs and three wildlife associated institutions. A total of 185 samples were obtained from 83 individuals belonging to 15 different species, including vulnerable and endangered species. Each specimen was sampled with two different swabs: one oropharyngeal or nasopharyngeal according to the nostril diameter, and/or a second rectal sample. RNA was extracted from the samples and two different molecular assays were performed: first, a conventional RT-PCR with pan-coronavirus primers and a second SARS-CoV-2 qPCR targeting the N and S genes.Results All 185 samples were negative for SARS-CoV-2.Clinical relevance This study constitutes the first report on the surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 from wildlife treated in rehabilitation centers in Chile, and supports the biosafety procedures adopted in those centers.