A cross-sectional serosurvey of SARS-CoV-2 and co-infections in stray cats from the second wave to the sixth wave of COVID-19 outbreaks in Spain

Villanueva‐Saz, Sergio; Martínez, Marivi; Giner, Jacobo; González, Ana Isabel; Tobajas, Ana P.; Pérez, María Dolores; Lira‐Navarrete, Erandi; González-Ramírez, Andrés Manuel; Macías-León, Javier; Verde, Maite; Yzuel, Andrés; Hurtado‐Guerrero, R.; Arias, Maykel; Santiago, Llipsy; Aguiló-Gisbert, Jordi; Ruíz, Héctor; Lacasta, Delia; Marteles, Diana; Fernández, Antonio

doi:10.1007/s11259-022-10016-7

Cited by 13 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…Our results are in contrast to another report [ 39 ], which observed no differences in the positive samples in stray cats during different waves of the COVID-19 outbreak in the city of Zaragoza, Spain, for the period of October 2020—January 2022. These contrasting results could be attributed to the different origins of the samples (place of inhabitance, country), hence, different degrees of adherence to the anti-epidemic measures and the consequences thereof.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Human ELISA Detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Cats: Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Virus Spread in Domestic and Stray Cats in Bulgaria

Sirakov

Rusenova

Rusenov

et al. 2023

Veterinary Sciences

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The aim of this study was to verify whether the human DR-ELISA for the detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies can be applied in cats, and to assess the risk factors that determine the spread of the virus among the cat population in Bulgaria. The study included 92 serum samples collected from 68 domestic and 24 stray cats aged from 3 months to 20 years of age in the period of January–June 2021. The samples originated from three regions in Bulgaria and from three places of inhabitance. DR-ELISA based on peroxidase-labeled SARS-CoV-2 N protein was employed to detect IgA, IgG and IgM antibodies in the samples. Subsequently, the results were compared with a commercially available multi-species ELISA kit. There was high seroprevalence (83.33%) in stray cats and 41.18% in domestic cats, confirmed by the human and veterinary ELISA kit. The positive cases in the regional cities were 42.86%, in small towns 50% and in villages 78.26%. Cats under 7 years had a five times higher risk than those over 7 years (p = 0.001). The risk was seven times higher for stray cats than for domestic cats (p = 0.001). In addition, the results indicate that the risk was the highest for cats in villages (p = 0.006) compared to cats in other places of inhabitance. This study demonstrates that human DR-ELISA may be successfully applied to monitor the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in cats and other susceptible species. Cats might serve as sentinel animals for tracking the virus in nature and in inhabited areas (strays) and to discover asymptomatic cases in humans/owners.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Human ELISA Detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Cats: Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Virus Spread in Domestic and Stray Cats in Bulgaria

Sirakov

Rusenova

Rusenov

et al. 2023

Veterinary Sciences

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“…The negative control group comprised clinically healthy cats included in the annual screening program (n = 121) and sick cats seropositive for other pathogens to evaluate cross‐reactivity (n = 25). The other pathogens included the most prevalent pathogens in the Zaragoza region, such as Leishmania infantum (n = 5), Dirofilaria immitis (n = 5), Bartonella henselae (n = 5), FIV (n = 5), and FeLV (n = 5) 9,10 . The inclusion of seropositive samples for other pathogens is commonly performed to evaluate commercial ICTs in small animals 11 …”

Section: Test Results Serologic Results Obtained By In‐house Ifat Tes...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…FIV (n = 5), and FeLV (n = 5). 9,10 The inclusion of seropositive samples for other pathogens is commonly performed to evaluate commercial ICTs in small animals. 11 Serologic status was recorded through a retrospective review of the sample files in the laboratory database.…”

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confidence: 99%

Evaluation of an immunochromatographic serologic test to detect the presence of anti‐Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in cats

Villanueva‐Saz

Martínez

Giner

et al. 2023

Veterinary Clinical Pathol

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Background Toxoplasmosis is a protozoan disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii. Different T. gondii confirmatory techniques, including serologic methods, are available to detect the presence of the parasite. Among serology techniques, immunochromatographic rapid testing could be a reliable alternative to serologic laboratory techniques. Objective This study evaluated a commercial immunochromatographic test (FASTest TOXOPLASMA g) in seronegative and seropositive cats. Methods Two indirect immunofluorescence antibody reference tests, an in‐house technique, and a commercial test were used to classify 292 feline serum samples. The rapid test was evaluated in different groups of cats, including healthy seronegative cats (n = 121), seropositive cats with variable anti‐Toxoplasma antibodies (n = 146), and cats with positive serologic results for other pathogens (n = 25). The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, receiver operating characteristic curves, and kappa statistics were analyzed as performance measures. Results Of the 292 samples, 146 were classified as T. gondii seropositive and 146 as T. gondii seronegative. Concordant results were obtained for all samples using immunofluorescence antibody tests. The diagnostic measures of this rapid test showed 98.63% sensitivity and 100% specificity, and 99.32% accuracy. The kappa statistics value was 0.986, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.993. Conclusions This rapid test showed diagnostic measurements similar to those of traditional quantitative serologic methods. In situations where laboratory techniques are not available, this test, under clinical conditions, could be a useful alternative to obtain accurate results rapidly.

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“…To determine the cut‐off in the absence of serum from a positive status, we used the mean value from a known negative animal population reference and added three standard deviations (SDs) to the mean optical density (OD) to determine the cut‐off, which is the most common approaching used in veterinary diagnostics for detecting different pathogens (Saraswati et al., 2019; Villanueva‐Saz, Martínez, et al., 2022).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serological exposure to influenza A in cats from an area with wild birds positive for avian influenza

Villanueva‐Saz,

Martínez,

Rueda

et al. 2023

Zoonoses and Public Health

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Influenza A is an emerging zoonotic virus with worldwide distribution. To our knowledge, no studies have been conducted to assess influenza A exposure in stray cats in regions with positive cases of wild birds. This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of anti‐influenza A antibodies in feral cats from a region in Spain with cases of positive wild birds. A cross‐sectional study of stray cats (n = 183) was conducted between March 2022 and March 2023. The presence of antibodies against the influenza A virus was tested using a commercial enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay kit adapted for this study and confirmed by competitive enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of antibodies against the haemagglutinin H5. During sample collection, none of the cats exhibited clinical signs of illness. Four of the 183 animals tested showed anti‐influenza A antibodies by ELISA, and the seroprevalence of influenza A was 2.19% (95% confidence interval 0.85%–5.48%). Due to the low number of positive cases detected, it appears that cats did not have an important epidemiological role in influenza A transmission during this period.

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A cross-sectional serosurvey of SARS-CoV-2 and co-infections in stray cats from the second wave to the sixth wave of COVID-19 outbreaks in Spain

Cited by 13 publications

References 53 publications

Human ELISA Detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Cats: Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Virus Spread in Domestic and Stray Cats in Bulgaria

Human ELISA Detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Cats: Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Virus Spread in Domestic and Stray Cats in Bulgaria

Evaluation of an immunochromatographic serologic test to detect the presence of anti‐Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in cats

Serological exposure to influenza A in cats from an area with wild birds positive for avian influenza

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