162235 20251017144634.0 doi 10.1007/s11259-022-10016-7 sideral 131228 ART-2023-131228 eng Villanueva-Saz, Sergio Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0001-6209-4282 A cross-sectional serosurvey of SARS-CoV-2 and co-infections in stray cats from the second wave to the sixth wave of COVID-19 outbreaks in Spain 2023 Access copy available to the general public Unrestricted Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 is the causative agent of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in humans. Among domestic animals, cats are more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 than dogs. The detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in seemingly healthy cats and/or infected cats which are in close contact with infected humans has been described. The presence of animals that tested positive by serology or molecular techniques could represent a potential transmission pathway of SARS-CoV-2 that can spill over into urban wildlife. This study analyses the seroprevalence variation of SARS-CoV-2 in stray cats from different waves of outbreaks in a geographical area where previous seroepidemiological information of SARS-CoV-2 was available and investigate if SARS-CoV-2-seropositive cats were exposed to other co-infections causing an immunosuppressive status and/or a chronic disease that could lead to a SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility. For this purpose, a total of 254 stray cats from Zaragoza (Spain) were included. This analysis was carried out by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using the receptor binding domain of Spike antigen and confirmed by serum virus neutralization assay. The presence of co-infections including Toxoplasma gondii, Leishmania infantum, Dirofilaria immitis, feline calicivirus, feline herpesvirus type 1, feline leukemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus, was evaluated using different serological methods. A seropositivity of 1.57% was observed for SARS-CoV-2 including the presence of neutralizing antibodies in three cats. None of the seropositive to SARS-CoV-2 cats were positive to feline coronavirus, however, four SARS-CoV-2-seropositive cats were also seropositive to other pathogens such as L. infantum, D. immitis and FIV (n = 1), L. infantum and D. immitis (n = 1) and L. infantum alone (n = 1).Considering other pathogens, a seroprevalence of 16.54% was detected for L. infantum, 30.31% for D. immitis, 13.78%, for T. gondii, 83.86% for feline calicivirus, 42.52% for feline herpesvirus type 1, 3.15% for FeLV and 7.87% for FIV. Our findings suggest that the epidemiological role of stray cats in SARS-CoV-2 transmission is scarce, and there is no increase in seropositivity during the different waves of COVID-19 outbreaks in this group of animals. Further epidemiological surveillances are necessary to determine the risk that other animals might possess even though stray cats do not seem to play a role in transmission. info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess All rights reserved http://www.europeana.eu/rights/rr-f/ 1.8 2023 VETERINARY SCIENCES 53 / 167 = 0.317 2023 Q2 T1 0.483 2023 Veterinary (miscellaneous) 2023 Q2 Medicine (miscellaneous) 2023 Q3 2.5 2023 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion Martínez, Mariví (orcid)0000-0002-9071-1919 Giner, Jacobo González, Ana (orcid)0000-0002-8727-0323 Tobajas, Ana Pilar Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-2646-5733 Pérez, María Dolores Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-2555-8425 Lira-Navarrete, Erandi González-Ramírez, Andrés Manuel Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-5838-0857 Macías-León, Javier (orcid)0000-0001-6815-6720 Verde, Maite Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0003-2957-1379 Yzuel, Andrés Hurtado-Guerrero, Ramón (orcid)0000-0002-3122-9401 Arias, Maykel (orcid)0000-0002-9730-2210 Santiago, Llipsy (orcid)0000-0002-1861-5981 Aguiló-Gisbert, Jordi Ruíz, Héctor Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-8474-2831 Lacasta, Delia Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-7822-6646 Marteles, Diana Universidad de Zaragoza Fernández, Antonio Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0002-2557-4890 1002 060 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Bioq.Biolog.Mol. Celular Área Bioquímica y Biolog.Mole. 1009 617 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Patología Animal Área Medicina y Cirugía Animal 2008 780 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Produc.Animal Cienc.Ali. Área Tecnología de Alimentos 47, 2 (2023), 615–629 Vet. res. commun. Veterinary Research Communications 0165-7380 383733 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/162235/files/texto_completo.pdf Postprint 1255893 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/162235/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon icon Postprint oai:zaguan.unizar.es:162235 articulos driver 2025-10-17-14:28:16 ARTICLE