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© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people worldwide since its emergence in 2019. Knowing the potential capacity of the virus to adapt to other species, the serological surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 infection in susceptible animals is important. Hong Kong and Seoul are two of Asia’s most densely populated urban cities, where companion animals often live in close contact with humans. Sera collected from 1040 cats and 855 dogs during the early phase of the pandemic in Hong Kong and Seoul were tested for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using an ELISA that detects antibodies against the receptor binding domain of the viral spike protein. Positive sera were also tested for virus neutralizing antibodies using a surrogate virus neutralization (sVNT) and plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT). Among feline sera, 4.51% and 2.54% of the samples from Korea and Hong Kong, respectively, tested ELISA positive. However, only 1.64% of the samples from Korea and 0.18% from Hong Kong tested positive by sVNT, while only 0.41% of samples from Korea tested positive by PRNT. Among canine samples, 4.94% and 6.46% from Korea and Hong Kong, respectively, tested positive by ELISA, while only 0.29% of sera from Korea were positive on sVNT and no canine sera tested positive by PRNT. These results confirm a low seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 exposure in companion animals in Korea and Hong Kong. The discordance between the RBD-ELISA and neutralization tests may indicate possible ELISA cross-reactivity with other coronaviruses, especially in canine sera.

Details

Title
Low Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Canine and Feline Serum Samples Collected during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong and Korea
Author
Yun Young Go 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Carrai, Maura 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Choi, Yan Ru 2 ; Brackman, Christopher J 3 ; Tam, Karina W S 3 ; Law, Pierra Y T 3 ; Woodhouse, Fiona 4 ; Gray, Jane 4 ; Kim, Ji Hun 5 ; Park, Joohyung 6 ; Jeon, Chae Won 7 ; Jang, Hyomi 7 ; Magouras, Ioannis 1 ; Decaro, Nicola 8   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Samuel MS Cheng 9   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Peiris, Malik 9 ; Beatty, Julia A 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Barrs, Vanessa R 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China 
 Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences and Centre for Animal Health and Welfare, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China 
 Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong 999077, China 
 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong), 5 Wan Shing St, Wan Chai, Hong Kong 999077, China 
 24 h Jamsil On Animal Medical Center, Songpa-gu, Seoul 05556, Republic of Korea 
 VIP Animal Medical Center, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02830, Republic of Korea 
 Neodin Biovet Laboratory, Guri-si 11956, Republic of Korea 
 Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 70010 Valenzano, Italy 
 School of Public Health, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China 
First page
582
Publication year
2023
Publication date
2023
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
19994915
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2779701017
Copyright
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.