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. 2021 Jun 1:43:e000421.
doi: 10.29374/2527-2179.bjvm000421. eCollection 2021.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in cats: a systematic review

Ana Izabel Passarella Teixeira  1 , Ligia Cantarino  2
Affiliations

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in cats: a systematic review

Ana Izabel Passarella Teixeira et al. Braz J Vet Med. .

Abstract
in English, Portuguese

The epidemiological role of cats in the coronavirus disease pandemic remains unclear despite of several studies that have been conducted to understand it, in other words it is not yet known whether the cat would be able to transmit severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to humans. Taking that into account, the objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review to identify what is known and not known on this topic. Our results revealed that cats can be infected through an airborne (perhaps oral, too) route and that the clinical development of the infection in cats is parallel to that in humans. The majority of infected cats remained asymptomatic, and more severe clinical cases described occurred only in animals with comorbidities. In addition to infection, cats achieved seroconversion with detectable titers. However, the epidemiological role of cats in relation to transmission routes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) remains unclear and needs to be studied further. We emphasize that, regardless of the conclusion regarding the epidemiological role of cats, this reinforces the concepts of ONE HEALTH to be incorporated into the studies and practices of epidemiological surveillance of infectious diseases, with multidisciplinary teams, to achieve an understanding of the transmission of diseases with zoonotic potential.

O papel epidemiológico dos gatos na pandemia da doença causada pelo novo coronavírus ainda não foi esclarecido. Apesar de vários estudos realizados, ainda não foi determinado se os gatos poderiam transmitir o vírus da síndrome respiratória aguda grave coronavírus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) para os humanos. Diante disso, o objetivo deste estudo foi realizar uma revisão sistemática sobre esse tema. Nossos resultados destacam os achados de que os gatos podem ser infectados por via aérea, talvez oral também, e de que o desenvolvimento clínico da infecção em gatos guarda um paralelo com a infecção em humanos, pois a maioria dos gatos infectados que foram estudados permaneceu assintomática, e os casos clínicos mais graves descritos ocorreram apenas em animais com comorbidades. Além da presença do vírus, os gatos também desenvolvem anticorpos específicos. Ressaltamos que, independentemente da conclusão quanto ao papel epidemiológico dos gatos, os achados desse estudo reforçam os conceitos de ÚNICA SAÚDE a serem incorporados aos estudos e práticas de vigilância epidemiológica de doenças infecciosas, com equipes multidisciplinares, para o entendimento da transmissão de doenças com potencial zoonótico.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; domestic cat; epidemiology.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interests: All authors declare that’s no conflict of interest..

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Retrieval flow chart.
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