Comparative Assessment of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Variants in the Ferret Model
Joanna A. Pulit-Penaloza, Jessica A. Belser, Xiangjie Sun, Claudia Pappas, Nicole Brock, Troy J. Kieran, Jana M. Ritter, Josilene Nascimento Seixas, Joyce Jones, Poulami Basu Thakur, Elizabeth A. Pusch, Li Wang, Terrence M. Tumpey, David E. Wentworth, Bin Zhou, Taronna R. Maines
Abstract
evaluations are indispensable for early detection of variants with enhanced virulence and transmission. Here, we used the ferret model to compare the pathogenicity and transmissibility of an original SARS-CoV-2 isolate (USA-WA1/2020 [WA1]) to those of a panel of Alpha, Beta, and Delta variants, as well as to evaluate protection from homologous and heterologous reinfection. We observed strain-specific differences in replication kinetics in the ferret respiratory tract and virus load emitted into the air, revealing enhanced transmissibility of the Delta virus relative to previously detected strains. Prior infection with SARS-CoV-2 provided varied levels of protection from reinfection, with the Beta strain eliciting the lowest level of protection. Overall, we found that ferrets represent a useful model for comparative assessments of SARS-CoV-2 infection, transmission, and reinfection.