CAS Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
Zool Res. 2022 Jul 18;43(4):514-522. doi: 10.24272/j.issn.2095-8137.2021.480.
Bats are reservoirs of various viruses. The widely distributed cave nectar bat ( ) is known to carry both filoviruses and coronaviruses. However, the potential transmission of theses bat viruses to humans is not fully understood. In this study, we tracked 16 bats in Mengla County, Yunnan Province, China, using miniaturized GPS devices to investigate their movements and potential contact with humans. Furthermore, to determine the prevalence of coronavirus and filovirus infections, we screened for the nucleic acids of the Měnglà virus (MLAV) and two coronaviruses (GCCDC1-CoV and HKU9-CoV) in anal swab samples taken from bats and for antibodies against these viruses in human serum samples. None of the serum samples were found to contain antibodies against the bat viruses. The GPS tracking results showed that the bats did not fly during the daytime and rarely flew to residential areas. The foraging range of individual bats also varied, with a mean cumulative nightly flight distance of 25.50 km and flight speed of up to 57.4 km/h. Taken together, these results suggest that the risk of direct transmission of GCCDC1-CoV, HKU9-CoV, and MLAV from bats to humans is very low under natural conditions.
蝙蝠是多种病毒的宿主。广泛分布的洞穴花蜜蝙蝠()已知携带丝状病毒和冠状病毒。然而,这些蝙蝠病毒向人类传播的潜在风险尚不完全清楚。在这项研究中,我们使用微型 GPS 设备跟踪了中国云南省勐腊县的 16 只蝙蝠,以调查它们的活动轨迹和与人类潜在的接触。此外,为了确定冠状病毒和丝状病毒感染的流行情况,我们从蝙蝠的肛门拭子样本中筛查了勐腊病毒(MLAV)和两种冠状病毒(GCCDC1-CoV 和 HKU9-CoV)的核酸,并检测了人类血清样本中针对这些病毒的抗体。没有血清样本检测到针对蝙蝠病毒的抗体。GPS 跟踪结果表明,蝙蝠在白天不飞行,很少飞往居民区。个别蝙蝠的觅食范围也不同,平均夜间累计飞行距离为 25.50 公里,飞行速度高达 57.4 公里/小时。综上所述,这些结果表明,在自然条件下,蝙蝠直接将 GCCDC1-CoV、HKU9-CoV 和 MLAV 传播给人类的风险非常低。