Malmgren Rasmus, Venkat Vinaya, Virtanen Jenni, Kegler Kristel, Niamsap Thanakorn, Kareinen Lauri, Kivelä Olga, Atanasova Nina, Österlund Pamela, Smura Teemu, Sukura Antti, Dutra Lara, Vapalahti Olli, Nordgren Heli, Kant Ravi, Sironen Tarja, Aaltonen Kirsi
Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 9, Helsinki, 00790, Finland.
Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, 00014, Finland.
Sci Rep. 2025 Jul 1;15(1):22270. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-08111-1.
The SARS-CoV-2 BA.1 (Omicron) variant, which emerged in late 2021, is more transmissible than earlier variants but causes milder symptoms in humans. Mink farms, where animals are housed in close quarters, present a high risk for virus transmission and mutation, necessitating strict control measures due to documented cases of mink-to-human and human-to-mink transmission. Hence, we aimed to detect infectious airborne SARS-CoV-2 using BioSampler-air collectors and to investigate aerosol transmission between groups of American mink (Neovison vison). Two groups (male and female) were infected with the BA.1 variant, and samples were collected from aerosols, saliva, feces, and surfaces. The results indicated that infectious viruses were predominantly detected in aerosol samples over a three-day period in both groups. Surface, saliva, and fecal samples also showed potential for virus transmission. Notably, infectious viruses were cultivated from aerosol samples, confirming aerosol transmission among American mink. This study highlights the importance of immediate sample culturing to improve infectious virus detection and emphasizes the need for enhanced preventive measures on mink farms to mitigate the spread of viruses.
2021年末出现的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）BA.1（奥密克戎）变种比早期变种的传播性更强，但在人类中引起的症状较轻。水貂养殖场中动物饲养密度大，存在病毒传播和变异的高风险，鉴于有记录的水貂传人及人传水貂病例，需要采取严格的控制措施。因此，我们旨在使用空气生物采样器检测空气中具有传染性的SARS-CoV-2，并调查美国水貂（Neovison vison）群体之间的气溶胶传播情况。两组（雄性和雌性）感染了BA.1变种，并从气溶胶、唾液、粪便和表面采集样本。结果表明，在两组为期三天的时间里，气溶胶样本中主要检测到具有传染性的病毒。表面、唾液和粪便样本也显示出病毒传播的可能性。值得注意的是，从气溶胶样本中培养出了具有传染性的病毒，证实了美国水貂之间存在气溶胶传播。这项研究强调了立即进行样本培养以提高传染性病毒检测的重要性，并强调需要加强水貂养殖场的预防措施以减轻病毒传播。
