PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Hawks, Seth A.
AU  - Prussin, Aaron J.
AU  - Kuchinsky, Sarah C.
AU  - Pan, Jin
AU  - Marr, Linsey C.
AU  - Duggal, Nisha K.
TI  - Infectious SARS-CoV-2 is emitted in aerosols
AID  - 10.1101/2021.08.10.455702
DP  - 2021 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2021.08.10.455702
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/08/10/2021.08.10.455702.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/08/10/2021.08.10.455702.full
AB  - Respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 are transmitted in respiratory droplets and aerosols, which are released during talking, breathing, coughing, and sneezing. Non-contact transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has been demonstrated, suggesting transmission in aerosols. Here we demonstrate that golden Syrian hamsters emit infectious SARS-CoV-2 in aerosols, prior to and concurrent with the onset of mild clinical signs of disease. The average emission rate is 25 infectious virions/hour on days 1 and 2 post-inoculation, with average viral RNA levels 200-fold higher than infectious virus in aerosols. Female hamsters have delayed kinetics of viral shedding in aerosols compared to male hamsters, with peak viral emission for females on dpi 2 and for males on dpi 1. The majority of virus is contained within aerosols <8 µm in size. Thus, we provide direct evidence that, in hamsters, SARS-CoV-2 is an airborne virus.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.