128017 20260217205452.0 doi 10.1007/s11259-023-10190-2 sideral 135178 ART-2024-135178 eng Giner, Jacobo Seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in household domestic ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) in Spain, 2019–2023 2024 Access copy available to the general public Unrestricted SARS-CoV-2 is the causal agent of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in humans that emerged in late 2019. This virus is able to infect humans and different animal species. Among pets, cats and ferrets are more susceptible to be infected by the SARS-CoV-2. Epidemiological studies are an important tool to provide information under natural conditions of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. In comparison to cats, limited epidemiological studies have been performed in domestic ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) reporting the presence of antibodies in this species. This study analysed the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in 432 cliend-owned ferrets from different geographical areas of Spain during the different waves of COVID-19 outbreaks from December 2019 to May 2023 (42 months). For this purpose, anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent method (ELISA) using the receptor binding domain (RBD) of Spike antigen and confirmed by serum virus neutralization assay. Eighteen of the 432 ferrets included were seroreactive by the in-house ELISA (4.17%, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 2.65–6.49). In this sense, the wave of COVID-19 with the higher number of seropositive ferrets occurred during the seventh wave when the different Omicron subvariants were the dominant virus variants. Our results suggest that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in domestic ferrets in natural conditions is low. Further research is need to evaluate the potential risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from human to pets. info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess by https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.es 2.0 2024 VETERINARY SCIENCES 43 / 170 = 0.253 2024 Q2 T1 0.568 2024 Veterinary (miscellaneous) 2024 Q1 Medicine (miscellaneous) 2024 Q2 2.6 2024 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Lebrero, María Eugenia Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0001-5816-6167 Trotta, Michele Rueda, Pablo Vilalta, Laura Verde, Maite Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-2957-1379 Hurtado-Guerrero, Ramón (orcid)0000-0002-3122-9401 Pardo, Julián Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-0154-0730 Lacasta, Delia Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-7822-6646 Santiago, Llipsy Arias, Maykel (orcid)0000-0002-9730-2210 Peña-Fresneda, Natacha Montesinos, Andrés Pérez, María D. Fernández, Antonio Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-2557-4890 Villanueva-Saz, Sergio Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0001-6209-4282 1011 566 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Microb.Ped.Radio.Sal.Pú. Área Inmunología 1009 617 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Patología Animal Área Medicina y Cirugía Animal 48 (2024), 533–540 Vet. res. commun. Veterinary Research Communications 0165-7380 659276 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/128017/files/texto_completo.pdf Versión publicada 2071242 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/128017/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon icon Versión publicada oai:zaguan.unizar.es:128017 articulos driver 2026-02-17-20:19:16 ARTICLE