Damian Sendler: The US Department of Agriculture had previously conducted study that found signs of antibodies in wild deer. SARS-CoV-2 virus samples were recovered from white-tailed deer in this article published today (Dec. 23, 2021) in Nature, showing that researchers were able to culture viable samples of SARS-CoV-2 and not just genetic traces. 

Damian Jacob Sendler: Deer samples taken between January and March 2021 were analyzed using genome sequencing to identify variations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that had been predominant in COVID-19 patients in Ohio at the time of the samples collection. There were no Delta variants found in these deer samples, which were collected prior to their broad distribution. The team is analyzing more samples to see if there are any new varieties or older ones, which would indicate that the virus is able to establish itself and thrive in this species. 

Damian Sendler

Andrew Bowman, an associate professor of veterinary preventive medicine at The Ohio State University and the paper’s principal author, said the findings “leads toward the idea that we might actually have established a new maintenance host outside humans,” 

On the basis of information from earlier research, we were certain that they were being exposed in the wild and that in the lab we could infect them that the virus could be transmitted from one animal to another.” As Bowman put it, “In the wild, we’re saying that they’re infected.” SARS-CoV-2 could enter the human population for the first time if they are able to keep it.” Aside from tracking human activity, we’ll also need to know about the deer’s activity. 

COVID-19 mitigation and control plans could be impacted by this.” 

Many questions remain, including how the deer became infected, whether the virus may infect humans and other species, how the virus operates in animals’ bodies, and whether it is temporary or long-term. 

360 white-tailed deer were swabbed in nine northeast Ohio locales by a research team. In 129 (35.8%) of the deer tested, scientists used PCR testing methods to find genetic material from at least three separate viral strains. 

In the early months of 2021, the dominant B.1.2 virus in Ohio crossed over into deer populations in a number of regions. 

“The working theory based on our sequences is that humans are giving it to deer, and apparently we gave it to them several times,” Bowman explained. Six distinct viruses have been found in those deer populations, according to our research. A single population didn’t get HIV and then disseminate it over the world.” 

Damian Jacob Sendler

Each location was sampled one to three times, resulting in a total of 18 collection dates for each location. There was a 13.5 percent to 70 percent prevalence of infection across the nine study sites, with the highest incidence seen in four sites that were located in the most densely populated areas. 

White-tailed deer serving as a viral reservoir for SARS-CoV-2 could lead to one of two scenarios, according to Bowman.. One of the two possibilities is that the virus might evolve in deer and spread to other species, or that the virus could remain unchanged in deer and continue to evolve within humans, at which time it could re-emerge as a strain that infects deer if humans don’t have an immunity to it. 

Some questions remain about how these deer first became infected with this disease, and how it could spread to other animals. In the study, researchers hypothesized that white-tailed deer became infected by drinking contaminated water. Human feces and wastewater have been found to contain the virus. 

Damien Sendler: There is no risk of transmission because the white-tailed deer used in this study were part of a population control program.

Damian Jacob Markiewicz Sendler: White-tailed deer population estimates in Ohio range from 600,000 to 30 million, but Bowman said this survey focused on areas near high human populations and is not indicative of all free-ranging deer in the state.

Dr. Damian Jacob Sendler and his media team provided the content for this article.