COVID Virus Found in ‘Common Backyard Animals’ in US

New research has revealed a surprising side to the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing the global crisis, now being detected in “large populations of common backyard animals.”

The researchers studied 23 plants commonly found in Virginia backyards and found that six of them harbored the virus.

Genetic analysis confirmed not only the presence of SARS-CoV-2, but also unique viral mutations that closely matched human variants circulating during the study period. The highest exposure to SARS-CoV-2 was found in animals near hiking trails and public areas with high foot traffic. This suggests that the virus was transmitted from humans to wild animals..

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The study, published in a peer-reviewed journal, Nature Communicationshighlights the importance of monitoring wildlife for new mutations of SARS-CoV-2, which could pose a greater risk due to increased transmissibility and pose challenges for vaccine development.

However, scientists stressed that they found no evidence that the virus had jumped from animals to humans and that people should not fear typical contact with wild animals.

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The researchers tested 23 animal species commonly found in Virginia for active infection and antibodies that indicate past infection.

The researchers found traces of the virus in deer mice, Virginia opossums, raccoons, groundhogs, cottontail rabbits, and red bats. The virus isolated from one opossum showed previously unreported viral mutations that may affect how the virus affects humans and the immune response.

“Viruses can be transmitted from humans to wild animals through human contact, in the same way that a hitchhiker can jump ship to a new, more suitable host,” study author and biology professor Carla Finkelstein said in a statement. “The goal of a virus is to spread in order to survive. The virus wants to infect as many humans as possible, but many of us are protected by vaccinations, so viruses infect animals and then adapt and mutate in order to thrive in the new host.”

SARS CoV-2 infections have previously been identified in wild animals, primarily white-tailed deer and wild mink.

However, a Virginia Tech study showed a significant increase in the number of species surveyed. Viral infection Transmission to and between wild animals. Data suggest that exposure to the virus is widespread among wild animals and that areas with high human activity may be contact points for interspecies transmission.

“This study was prompted by our realization that there were significant and important gaps in our knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 transmission throughout wildlife communities,” study author Joseph Hoyt, assistant professor of biological sciences, said in a statement. “Much of the research to date has focused on white-tailed deer, leaving it unclear what is happening in many of the wildlife species that commonly inhabit our backyards.”

The researchers collected 798 nasal and oral swabs from animals across Virginia that had been caught and released from the wild or treated at wildlife rehabilitation centers, as well as 126 blood samples from six animal species.

These sites were chosen to compare the presence of viruses in animals across different levels of human activity, from urban areas to remote wilderness.

The study also identified two mice with the exact same variant on the same day and in the same location, suggesting that they either both got infected from the same human, or that one had transmitted it to the other.

However, researchers are still unsure of the exact mechanism by which the virus spreads from humans to animals. While wastewater is a possible source, scientists believe trash and discarded food are more likely sources.

“We think the key lesson from this study is that this virus is everywhere, and we’ve seen positive cases in many common backyard animals,” study author Amanda Goldberg said in a statement.

Although the study was conducted in Virginia, many of the species that tested positive are found throughout North America, suggesting that these animals may be carrying the virus in other areas, and Hoyt said expanded surveillance across a broader geographic area is urgently needed.

“Viruses don’t care if their host is bipedal or quadrupedal. A virus’s main goal is to survive. Mutations that don’t give the virus an advantage in survival or replication will not persist and will eventually die out,” Finkelstein said.

While the researchers know that “SARS CoV-2 is not just a human problem,” they acknowledge that monitoring these mutations will need to continue and that more research is needed into how the virus jumps from humans to wildlife.

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