Global view on virus infection in non-human primates and implications for public health and wildlife conservation.

Zhijin Liu ,Min-Heng Hong,Xue-Kun Qian,Ming Li,Ke-Yue Fan,Hua-Jian Nie,Christian Roos,Tian-Han Wang,Weilai Sha ,Xiongfei Zhang ,Ziming Wang ,Dayong Li ,Mengmeng Chen ,Liye Zhang ,Yang Zuomin ,Jiali Zhang

doi:10.24272/j.issn.2095-8137.2021.080

Abstract

Viruses can be transmitted from animals to humans (and vice versa) and across animal species. As such, host-virus interactions and transmission have attracted considerable attention. Non-human primates (NHPs), our closest evolutionary relatives, are susceptible to human viruses and certain pathogens are known to circulate between humans and NHPs. Here, we generated global statistics on virus infections in NHPs (VI-NHPs) based on a literature search and public data mining. In total, 140 NHP species from 12 families are reported to be infected by 186 DNA and RNA virus species, 68.8% of which are also found in humans, indicating high potential for crossing species boundaries. The top 10 NHP species with high centrality in the NHP-virus network include two great apes (Pan troglodytes, Pongo pygmaeus) and eight Old World monkeys (Macaca mulatta, M. fascicularis, M. leonina, Papio cynocephalus, Cercopithecus ascanius, C. erythrotis, Chlorocebus aethiops, and Allochrocebus lhoesti). Given the wide distribution of Old World monkeys and their frequent contact with humans, there is a high risk of virus circulation between humans and such species. Thus, we suggest recurring epidemiological surveillance of NHPs, specifically Old World monkeys that are in frequent contact with humans, and other effective measures to prevent potential circulation and transmission of viruses. Avoidance of false positives and sampling bias should also be a focus in future work.

Highlights

Creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
Recent studies suggest that pets and other animals may be infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV-2 through natural contact with humans as well as across animal species (Tazerji et al, 2020; Helmy et al, 2020)
From a compilation of 673 virus species and 415 mammalian and bird species, Mollentze & Streicker (2020) found that variation in the number of zoonoses in each mammalian order is consistent with a host-neutral model, whereby more species rich reservoir groups host more viruses and a larger number of zoonotic species

Summary

Introduction

Creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Among the 186 virus species reported in NHPs, 128 (68.8%) were shared with humans, indicating high zoonotic potential (Figure 1C). The most documented VI-NHPs occurred in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta, 51 virus species; Supplementary Figure S2), 37 of which are shared with humans.

Results

Conclusion