Infection and transmission of ancestral SARS-CoV-2 and its alpha variant in pregnant white-tailed deer
Konner Cool, Natasha N. Gaudreault, Igor Morozov, Jessie D. Trujillo, David A. Meekins, Chester D. McDowell, Mariano Carossino, Dashzeveg Bold, Dana Mitzel, Taeyong Kwon, Velmurugan Balaraman, Daniel W. Madden, Bianca L. Artiaga, Roman M. Pogranichniy, Gleyder Roman-Sosa, Jamie Henningson, William C. Wilson, Udeni B. R. Balasuriya, Adolfo Garcı́a-Sastre, Jüergen A. Richt
Abstract
studies have indicated that deer are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. White-tailed deer (WTD) are amongst the most abundant and geographically widespread wild ruminant species in the US. Recently, WTD fawns were shown to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2. In the present study, we investigated the susceptibility and transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in adult WTD. In addition, we examined the competition of two SARS-CoV-2 isolates, representatives of the ancestral lineage A and the alpha variant of concern (VOC) B.1.1.7 through co-infection of WTD. Next-generation sequencing was used to determine the presence and transmission of each strain in the co-infected and contact sentinel animals. Our results demonstrate that adult WTD are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and can transmit the virus through direct contact as well as vertically from doe to fetus. Additionally, we determined that the alpha VOC B.1.1.7 isolate of SARS-CoV-2 outcompetes the ancestral lineage A isolate in WTD, as demonstrated by the genome of the virus shed from nasal and oral cavities from principal infected and contact animals, and from the genome of virus present in tissues of principal infected deer, fetuses and contact animals.