Feline Leukemia Virus Frequently Spills Over from Domestic Cats to North American Pumas
Raegan J. Petch, Roderick B. Gagne, Elliott S. Chiu, Clara Mankowski, Jaime L. Rudd, Melody Roelke‐Parker, T. Winston Vickers, Kenneth A. Logan, Mathew W. Alldredge, Deana L. Clifford, Mark W. Cunningham, Dave Onorato, Sue VandeWoude
Abstract
Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) is a retrovirus that primarily affects domestic cats. Close interactions with domestic cats, including predation, can lead to the interspecific transmission of the virus to pumas, bobcats, or other feline species. Some infected individuals develop progressive infections, which are associated with clinical signs of disease and can result in mortality. Therefore, outbreaks of FeLV in wildlife, including the North American puma and the endangered Florida panther, are of high conservation concern. This work provides a greater understanding of the dynamics of the transmission of FeLV between domestic cats and wild felids and presents evidence of multiple spillover events and infections in all sampled populations. These findings highlight the concern for pathogen spillover from domestic animals to wildlife but also identify an opportunity to understand viral evolution following cross-species transmissions more broadly.