ABSTRACT
Influenza A viruses cause respiratory infections that range from asymptomatic to deadly in humans. Non-human primates (NHPs) are susceptible to infection with a number of influenza A isolates, including viruses of the H3N2, H5N1 and H1N1 subtypes. A 9-year-old emperor tamarin (Saguinus imperator 0.1) presented acute respiratory distress and apathy. The animal died 24 hours after first clinical signs. A necropsy was performed and showed severe pulmonary congestion associated with thoracic and abdominal effusion. Bacterial and parasitological testing on different organ was negative. Unfortunately, no histological analysis was performed. However, a PCR analysis on lungs showed the presence of H5N3 virus. All the callitrichids that lived with this emperor tamarin (Saguinus imperator 0.1) : three emperor tamarins (Saguinus imperator 0.3) and three pygmy marmosets (Cebuella pygmaea 3.0) were sampled. Anti-Influenza A antibodies were found in all three emperor tamarins (Saguinus imperator 0.3) but not in the three pygmy marmosets (Cebuella pygmaea 3.0). All sera were negative for SARS-COV-2 analysis. The three emperor tamarins (Saguinus imperator 0.3) remained asymptomatic, and no treatment was given to them. All avian species in the zoo are vaccinated against influenza and no birds showed respiratory signs. An epidemiological survey is in progress to determine how the infection occurred. This condition has, to the best of our knowledge, not been reported in the literature.
Subject(s)
Respiratory Tract Infections , Respiratory Distress SyndromeABSTRACT
SARS-CoV-2 is a coronavirus that sparked the current COVID-19 pandemic. To stop the shattering effect of COVID-19, effective and safe vaccines, and antiviral therapies are urgently needed. To facilitate the preclinical evaluation of intervention approaches, relevant animal models need to be developed and validated. Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis) are widely used in biomedical research and serve as models for SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, differences in study design make it difficult to compare and understand potential species-related differences. Here, we directly compared the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the two genetically closely-related macaque species. After inoculation with a low passage SARS-CoV-2 isolate, clinical, virological, and immunological characteristics were monitored. Both species showed slightly elevated body temperatures in the first days after exposure while a decrease in physical activity was only observed in the rhesus macaques and not in cynomolgus macaques. The virus was quantified in tracheal, nasal, and anal swabs, and in blood samples by qRT-PCR, and showed high similarity between the two species. Immunoglobulins were detected by various enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) and showed seroconversion in all animals by day 10 post-infection. The cytokine responses were highly comparable between species and computed tomography (CT) imaging revealed pulmonary lesions in all animals. Consequently, we concluded that both rhesus and cynomolgus macaques represent valid models for evaluation of COVID-19 vaccine and antiviral candidates in a preclinical setting.