The coronavirus that causes covid-19 seems to have discovered another species where it can reproduce and spread easily. Research done over the past week has confirmed that the virus is freely spreading among wild deer. Although it is not clear how significant this discovery is, it is possible that it could have an impact on our future with covid-19.
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Coronaviruses are well-known for infecting a wide variety of species. This trait made them prime suspects in a pandemic. While the origins of the pandemic remain a mystery, it is clear that SARS-CoV-2 was able to find a home in other animals. The virus has been confirmed to be present in cats, dogs, weasels and other primates such as gorillas.
Humans have been implicated in most animal outbreaks. It has been proven that the virus can spread from one animal to another, especially among weasels. These cases are often isolated, and can be seen in zoos that have workers who may infect several animals before the chain of transmission ends. The new research, published as a preprint paper by Biorxiv suggests that the virus is spreading to at least some white-tailed deer populations in the U.S.
Researchers from Penn State and other universities tested lymph nodes taken from almost 300 Iowa deer, both captives and free-living, for coronavirus DNA. These samples were taken from a well-established surveillance program for chronic waste disease (an emerging deer illness that many states are monitoring). About a third of the samples were positive for the virus between September 2020 and January 2021.
Moreover, samples taken from deer that were free to roam were more likely than those taken from captive populations (including those who live in preserves). The authors were able to map the geographical distribution and genetic signature of the cases and found that the virus had spread from humans to deer several times over the course of those months.
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Researchers from the USDA published research in August that suggested that as many as 40% of deer in Michigan and Illinois were susceptible to the coronavirus. The authors claim that their research is the first to confirm that the virus is circulating in wild white-tailed deer, which is North America's most common deer species. This could have serious implications for the future of our coronavirus research.
The authors stated that our results indicate that deer could be a major reservoir host of SARS-CoV-2. This finding has important implications for virus genetic diversity and the future course of the pandemic.
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They explain that viruses with one host are easier to track down and predict at an evolutionary level. A virus that moves between several species may acquire more mutations as it adapts. This could increase the likelihood of the virus escaping an individual's immunity, or worsening their chances of causing serious illness. SARS-CoV-2 that is more well-traveled has the opportunity to mix with other coronavirus species, which can lead to unlucky genetic jumbles. This dynamic is already evident in influenza. Influenza not only mutates quickly but sometimes swaps genes with other influenza viruses. This mix can sometimes lead to a pandemic strain or flu, in addition to the seasonal flu that we deal with each year. Although the coronavirus may mutate to make it more dangerous for deer, lab experiments suggest that most deer infected with it do not get sick.
Having another place to crash could be enough for the coronavirus, if not more serious, to wait its turn before returning to our lives. Researchers note that animal reservoirs are a place where the coronavirus can be kept away from a healthy population. This could pose a threat to human health.
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The pandemic remains in our current. It may take many years before the virus can infect more people. It is possible that the deervid-19 virus will return to infect humanity with avenging intent. The virus might not be as widespread in deer as in humans, but the risk posed by the coronavirus in another animal host are worth monitoring, according to the authors.
They wrote that despite experimental evidence suggesting that SARS CoV-2-infected deer remain largely unaffected, it is important to continue investigating the clinical and health consequences of SARS CoV-2 infection in deer free of disease.
