Seroprevalence of IgM and IgG anti-SARS-COV-2 and associated factors among agricultural workers in Colombia

Abstract

Background: The population of South America has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this region, during the year 2020, high seroprevalence percentages were reported, which have been associated with the socioeconomic characteristics of the population, mainly in urban areas. However, a relative lack of information on the dynamics of the pandemic in rural areas of these countries, where the population is more vulnerable, is still present. This study determined antibody prevalence against SARS-CoV-2 in urban and rural food producing workers in Colombia.

Methods: A total of 1242 workers, urban and rural, linked to poultry, dairy, and meat production and supply chains, were analyzed through a sociodemographic survey and two serological tests against S and N proteins of SARS-CoV-2.

Results: 78.7% were male. 50.9% of the participants were rural inhabitants, with an average age of 40.9 years old. 39.2% had IgM and IgG against SARS-CoV-2 S protein and 31.3% against N protein for the same virus; 83.6% had not been tested with an RT-PCR test for COVID-19 and 75.7% did not report symptoms related to the disease. The associated risk factors were low education, OR: 1.46, greater number of cohabitants, OR: 1.36, and contact with people infected with COVID-19, OR: 2.03.

Conclusions: The seroprevalences found suggest an important interconnectivity between rural and urban areas, where asymptomatic subjects and sociodemographic factors facilitate the virus' spread in the population.

Keywords: Agricultural workers; COVID-19; Colombia; SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels.

Fig. 1

Seroprevalence of antibodies against S and N protein of SARS CoV-2 in people linked to food production chains in Colombia. The value of the Pearson correlation coefficient (r) between the tests in each community is presented.