Abstract
We tested 144 pet rabbits sampled in France between November 2020 and June 2021 for antibodies to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by microsphere immunoassay. We reported the first evidence of a natural SARS-CoV-2 infection in rabbits with a low observed seroprevalence between 0.7% and 1.4%.
Highlights
Since the late 2019 emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in China, many studies have described the high propensity of SARS-COV-2 to cross the species barrier and infect a diversity of wild and domesticated animal species by experimental or natural infection [1]
We tested the 144 blood samples by microsphere assay using beads coupled with a spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) and trimeric spike antigens
Depending on the criteria used to determine positivity, we observed a seroprevalence of 0.7% using the most restrictive positivity criterion of positive results for two antigens, and 1.4% following a positive result for at least one antigen. This is the first evidence of a natural SARS-CoV-2 infection in rabbits, most likely acquired from a COVID-19-positive owner
Summary
Since the late 2019 emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in China, many studies have described the high propensity of SARS-COV-2 to cross the species barrier and infect a diversity of wild and domesticated animal species by experimental or natural infection [1]. This propensity may facilitate the establishment of new zoonotic reservoirs of SARS-CoV-2. Such an event, recently suggested following the observation of SARS-CoV-2 infections in white-tailed deer [2,3,4], could become a significant public health issue, as the human population may be susceptible to the reintroduction of viral strains with unknown pathology that have evolved in the reservoir species. There has been only one study, which noted an absence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies among
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