RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Humoral response to SARS-CoV-2 by healthy and sick dogs during COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2020.09.22.308023
DO 10.1101/2020.09.22.308023
A1 Ana Judith Perisé-Barrios
A1 Beatriz Davinia Tomeo-Martín
A1 Pablo Gómez-Ochoa
A1 Pablo Delgado-Bonet
A1 Pedro Plaza
A1 Paula Palau-Concejo
A1 Jorge González
A1 Gustavo Ortiz-Diez
A1 Antonio Meléndez-Lazo
A1 Michaela Gentil
A1 Javier García-Castro
A1 Alicia Barbero-Fernández
YR 2020
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/09/22/2020.09.22.308023.abstract
AB COVID-19 is a zoonotic disease originated by SARS-CoV-2. Infection of animals with SARS-CoV-2 are being reported during last months, and also an increase of severe lung pathologies in domestic dogs has been detected by veterinarians in Spain. Therefore it is necessary to describe the pathological processes in those animals that show symptoms similar to those described in humans affected by COVID-19. The potential for companion animals contributing to the continued human-to-human disease, infectivity, and community spread is an urgent issue to be considered.Forty animals with pulmonary pathologies were studied by chest X-ray, ultrasound study, and computed tomography. Nasopharyngeal and rectal swab were analyzed to detect canine pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2. Twenty healthy dogs living in SARS-CoV-2 positive households were included. Immunoglobulin detection by different immunoassays was performed. Our findings show that sick dogs presented severe alveolar or interstitial pattern, with pulmonary opacity, parenchymal abnormalities, and bilateral lesions. Forty dogs were negative for SARS-CoV-2 but Mycoplasma spp. was detected in 26 of 33 dogs. Five healthy and one pathological dog presented IgG against SARS-CoV-2.Here we report that despite detecting dogs with IgG α-SARS-CoV-2, we never obtained a positive RT-qPCR, not even in dogs with severe pulmonary disease; suggesting that even in the case of a canine infection transmission would be unlikely. Moreover, dogs living in COVID-19 positive households could have been more exposed to be infected during outbreaks.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.