Abstract
The severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally and has led to extremely high mortality rates. In addition to infecting humans, this virus also has infected animals. Experimental studies and natural infections showed that dogs have a low susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection, whereas domesticated cats and other animals in the family Felidae, such as lions, tigers, snow leopards, and cougars, have a high susceptibility to viral infections. In addition, wild white-tailed deer, gorillas, and otters have been found to be infected by SARS-CoV-2. Furry farm animals, such as minks, have a high susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection. The virus appears to spread among minks and generate several new mutations, resulting in increased viral virulence. Furthermore, livestock animals, such as cattle, sheep, and pigs, were found to have low susceptibility to the virus, whereas chicken, ducks, turkeys, quail, and geese did not show susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection. This knowledge can provide insights for the development of SARS-CoV-2 mitigation strategies in animals and humans. Therefore, this review focuses on experimental (both replication and transmission) in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo studies of SARS-CoV-2 infections in pets and in wild and farm animals, and to provide details on the mechanism associated with natural infection.
Highlights
In December 2019, a new human infectious respiratory disease outbreak was documented in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China [1]
The disease was designated by the World Health Organization as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and the virus was named as the severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses [3]
The results demonstrated that sheep lung and trachea cells exhibited angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors and supported the replication of both SARS-CoV-2 variants [41]
Summary
In December 2019, a new human infectious respiratory disease outbreak was documented in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China [1]. Analyses of changes in the binding energy (∆∆G) of the SARS-CoV-2 S-protein and the ACE2 complexes from cats, dogs, cows, sheep, and pigs showed that these animals belong to the risk category of SARS-CoV-2 infections, as indicated by ∆∆G values ≤3.72 [21]. This review focuses on experimental studies of SARS-CoV-2 infections, including in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo studies on viral replication and transmission capabilities in pets and wild and farm animals This explains the evidence of natural cases of SARS-CoV-2 infections in domesticated animals, including cats, dogs, minks, and wild animals, such as big cats and wild deer, in all continents until October 2021.
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