White-Tailed Deers in Iowa Tested Positive for COVID-19; Human Spit Possible Cause of Transmission

COVID-19 brought a pandemic that tested modern-day global health measures and scientific advances. Although vaccines are already available, the risks of the coronavirus continue to affect many through its mutations. Fortunately, the intensity of the global health threat is temporarily controlled.The strict health protocols against the pandemic are beneficial for many. On the contrary, certain limitations pushed the global population to adjust to many aspects of their lifestyle. Gatherings are prohibited, working at home became the new normal, and socialization became bizarre. In many studies, people still get the coronavirus even if they were cleared from the symptoms and the deadly condition. Moreover, some people who are not yet vaccinated but are strictly following the guidelines are also catching the disease. The capacity of COVID-19's transmission among the people seems to be unstoppable for now.

White-Tailed Deers in Iowa Positive of Coronavirus

Alongside the humans, there are cases where animals contract the coronavirus. In a new study, deers have been confirmed as the latest victims of the disease. The species are called the Odocoileus virginianus, which are best known as the white-tailed deer. MIC reported that the infection was detected from almost one-third of the deer population in Iowa. Experts expressed concerns about coronavirus being present in other species.

The study was made possible through the help of 283 white-tailed deers. The examination gathered lymph node specimens from each of the selected subjects from April to December of 2020. The results showed that about one-third of the Odocoileus virginianus had been positive with COVID-19. Based on the data, the poor animals tested positive between September and January 2021.

The overall research implies that the coronavirus infection detected in the white-tailed deers is probably an effect of human-to-deer contact and eventually triggered a deer-to-deer transmission. The study was published in the journal bioRxiv, titled "Multiple spillovers and onward transmission of SARS-Cov-2 in free-living and captive White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)."

Tobacco Spit from Humans Possible Cause of Transmission

Iowa's coronavirus detection in white-tailed deers is still under investigation to determine what gave the animals the deadly virus. According to the study, the most potential

transmission between humans and the Odocoileus virginianus species was through a tobacco spit. Several other methods are suspected as triggers of Iowa's human-to-deer case, including sewage waste or food supply from the state's citizens.

Iowa's wildlife veterinary expert and author of the study Rachel Ruden said in The New York Times report that the contact required for the human-to-deer transmission is low. It means that simple interactions from a coronavirus-infected person could be dangerous for the deers. The expert added that the interaction is high in the state, considering that over 445,000 white-tailed deers inhabit Iowa.

Ruden said that this is not the first case of a human-to-deer transmission. In a separate study published by the United States Department of Agriculture USDA, it was revealed that 40 percent of the collective deer population in Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New York are already carrying coronavirus antibodies.

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