SARS-CoV-2 in Domestic UK Cats from Alpha to Omicron: Swab Surveillance and Case Reports

Sarah Jones; Grace B. Tyson; Richard J. Orton; Katherine Smollett; Federica Manna; Kirsty Kwok; Nicolás M Suárez; Nicola Logan; Michael McDonald; Andrea Bowie; Ana Filipe; Brian J. Willett; William Weir; Margaret J. Hosie

doi:10.20944/preprints202308.0360.v1

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preprints.org > biology and life sciences > virology > doi: 10.20944/preprints202308.0360.v1

Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

SARS-CoV-2 in Domestic UK Cats from Alpha to Omicron: Swab Surveillance and Case Reports

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Version 1 : Received: 2 August 2023 / Approved: 3 August 2023 / Online: 4 August 2023 (14:48:06 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Jones, S.; Tyson, G.B.; Orton, R.J.; Smollett, K.; Manna, F.; Kwok, K.; Suárez, N.M.; Logan, N.; McDonald, M.; Bowie, A.; Filipe, A.D.S.; Willett, B.J.; Weir, W.; Hosie, M.J. SARS-CoV-2 in Domestic UK Cats from Alpha to Omicron: Swab Surveillance and Case Reports. Viruses 2023, 15, 1769. Jones, S.; Tyson, G.B.; Orton, R.J.; Smollett, K.; Manna, F.; Kwok, K.; Suárez, N.M.; Logan, N.; McDonald, M.; Bowie, A.; Filipe, A.D.S.; Willett, B.J.; Weir, W.; Hosie, M.J. SARS-CoV-2 in Domestic UK Cats from Alpha to Omicron: Swab Surveillance and Case Reports. Viruses 2023, 15, 1769.

Abstract

Although domestic cats are susceptible to infection with SARS-CoV-2, the role of the virus in causing feline disease is less well defined. We conducted a large-scale study to identify SARS-CoV-2 infections in UK pet cats, using active and passive surveillance. Remnant feline respiratory swab samples, submitted for other pathogen testing between May 2021 and February 2023, were screened using RT-qPCR. In addition, we appealed to veterinarians for swab samples from cats suspected of having clinical SARS-CoV-2 infections. Bespoke testing for SARS-CoV-2 neutralising antibodies was also performed, on request, in suspected cases. One RT-qPCR-positive cat was identified from the active surveillance (1/549, 0.18 %), during the Delta wave (1/175, 0.57 %). Passive surveillance detected one cat infected with the Alpha variant, and two of ten cats tested RT-qPCR-positive during the Delta wave. No cats tested RT-qPCR-positive after the emergence of Omicron BA.1 and its descendants although 374 were tested by active and eleven by passive surveillance. We describe four cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pet cats, identified by RT-qPCR and/or serology, that presented with a range of clinical signs, as well as their SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences. Our results demonstrate that, although uncommon, clinical infections in cats can and do occur.

Keywords

SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19; coronavirus; pets; companion animals; reverse zoonosis; veterinary; animal welfare; feline; One Health

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Virology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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