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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Infectious Diseases
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1435464

Comparative SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5 variant and D614G-Wuhan strain infections in ferrets: insights into attenuation and disease progression during subclinical to mild COVID-19

Provisionally accepted
Sandra Barroso-Arévalo Sandra Barroso-Arévalo 1*Lidia Sánchez-Morales Lidia Sánchez-Morales 1Néstor Porras González Néstor Porras González 2Marta Díaz-Frutos Marta Díaz-Frutos 1Jose A. Barasona Jose A. Barasona 1Julio Isla Julio Isla 3Débora López Débora López 1Christian Gortazar Christian Gortazar 4Lucas Domínguez Lucas Domínguez 1Jose M. Sánchez- Vizcaíno Jose M. Sánchez- Vizcaíno 1
  • 1 Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  • 2 VISAVET Health Surveillance Centre (UCM), Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  • 3 Sabiotec, Ciudad Real, Spain
  • 4 Energy Research Institute of Catalonia (IREC), Barcelona, Spain

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Given the continuous evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the emergence of new variants, understanding the comparative pathological and immunological outcomes of different strains is of paramount importance. Specifically, SARS-CoV-2 infections caused by the original Wuhan strain and the Omicron variant have shown significant disparities in clinical behavior and immunological response, as demonstrated in numerous field and experimental studies. Here, we evaluate the D614G variant (derived from the Wuhan strain) and Omicron BA.5 variant using ferrets as experimental model. Both strains were inoculated into a group of ferrets, with greater disease severity and viral dissemination being observed in those infected with the D614G strain. Furthermore, a robust neutralizing antibody response was markedly evident in ferrets infected with the D614G-Wuhan strain, whereas ferrets infected with Omicron variant did not generate a detectable neutralizing antibody response. Despite viral clearance from nearly all tissues by 7 days post-infection (dpi), an increase in pathological lesions was observed between 14 and 21 dpi, particularly in the D614G-Wuhan-infected group, indicating a sustained immune response even after viral clearance. The results from this investigation underscore the adaptability of SARS-CoV-2, shedding light on variations in susceptibility and clinical manifestations across different species and strains of the virus. These findings also emphasize the importance of considering both the direct effects of viral infection and the indirect, often longer-term, effects of the immune response when evaluating the outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

    Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, experimental model, Pathogenesis, omicron, Ferrets, attenuation

    Received: 20 May 2024; Accepted: 30 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Barroso-Arévalo, Sánchez-Morales, Porras González, Díaz-Frutos, Barasona, Isla, López, Gortazar, Domínguez and Sánchez- Vizcaíno. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Sandra Barroso-Arévalo, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.