Anthropogenic Infection of Cats during the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic

Hosie, M. J. et al. (2021) Anthropogenic Infection of Cats during the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic. Viruses, 13(2), 185. (doi: 10.3390/v13020185) (PMID:33530620) (PMCID:PMC7911697)

Abstract

COVID-19 is a severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) caused by a new coronavirus (CoV), SARS-CoV-2, which is closely related to SARS-CoV that jumped the animal−human species barrier and caused a disease outbreak in 2003. SARS-CoV-2 is a betacoronavirus that was first described in 2019, unrelated to the commonly occurring feline coronavirus (FCoV) that is an alphacoronavirus associated with feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). SARS-CoV-2 is highly contagious and has spread globally within a few months, resulting in the current pandemic. Felids have been shown to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Particularly in the Western world, many people live in very close contact with their pet cats, and natural infections of cats in COVID-19-positive households have been described in several countries. In this review, the European Advisory Board on Cat Diseases (ABCD), a scientifically independent board of experts in feline medicine from 11 European Countries, discusses the current status of SARS-CoV infections in cats. The review examines the host range of SARS-CoV-2 and human-to-animal transmissions, including infections in domestic and non-domestic felids, as well as mink-to-human/-cat transmission. It summarises current data on SARS-CoV-2 prevalence in domestic cats and the results of experimental infections of cats and provides expert opinions on the clinical relevance and prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection in cats.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: Funding: ABCD Europe gratefully acknowledges the support of Boehringer Ingelheim (the founding sponsor of the ABCD) and Virbac
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Hosie, Professor Margaret
• Authors: Hosie, M. J., Hofmann-Lehmann, R., Hartmann, K., Egberink, H., Truyen, U., Addie, D. D., Belák, S., Boucraut-Baralon, C., Frymus, T., Lloret, A., Lutz, H., Marsilio, F., Pennisi, M. G., Tasker, S., Thiry, E., and Möstl, K.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity > Centre for Virus Research
• Journal Name: Viruses
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 1999-4915
• ISSN (Online): 1999-4915
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Viruses 13(2):185
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License