Lack of detection of SARS-CoV-2 in wildlife from Kerala, India in 2020–21

Zachariah, Arun; Krishnankutty, Sajesh P; Manazhi, Jishnu; Omanakuttan, Vishnu; Santosh, Sam; Blanchard, Adam; Tarlinton, Rachael

Abstract

Spillover of SARS-CoV-2 into a variety of wild and domestic animals has been an ongoing feature of the human pandemic. The establishment of a new reservoir in white-tailed deer in North America and increasing divergence of the viruses circulating in them from those circulating in the human population has highlighted the ongoing risk this poses for global health. Some parts of the world have seen more intensive monitoring of wildlife species for SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses but there are still very large gaps in geographical and species-specific information. This paper reports negative results for SARS-CoV-2 PCR based testing using a pan coronavirus end point RDRP PCR and a Sarbecovirus specific E gene qPCR on lung and or gut tissue from wildlife from the Indian State of Kerala. These animals included: 121 Rhinolophus rouxii (Rufous Horsehoe Bat), six Rhinolophus bedommei (Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat), 15 Rossettus leschenaultii (Fulvous Fruit Bat), 47 Macaca radiata (Bonnet macaques), 35 Paradoxurus hermaphroditus (Common Palm Civet), five Viverricula indica (Small Indian Civet), four Herpestes edwardsii (Common Mongoose), ten Panthera tigris (Bengal Tiger), eight Panthera pardus fusca (Indian Leopard), four Prionailurus bengalensis (Leopard cats), two Felis chaus (Jungle cats), two Cuon alpinus (Wild dogs) and one Melursus ursinus (sloth bear).

Citation

Zachariah, A., Krishnankutty, S. P., Manazhi, J., Omanakuttan, V., Santosh, S., Blanchard, A., & Tarlinton, R. (2024). Lack of detection of SARS-CoV-2 in wildlife from Kerala, India in 2020–21. Access Microbiology, 6(1), Article 000686. https://doi.org/10.1099/acmi.0.000686.v3

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 17, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jan 31, 2024
• Publication Date: Jan 31, 2024
• Deposit Date: Feb 13, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 13, 2024
• Journal: Access Microbiology
• Electronic ISSN: 2516-8290
• Publisher: Microbiology Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 6
• Issue: 1
• Article Number: 000686
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1099/acmi.0.000686.v3
• Keywords: Coronavirus, wildlife, SARS-CoV-2
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/30665332
• Publisher URL: https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/acmi/10.1099/acmi.0.000686.v3
• PMID: 38361659