SARS-CoV-2 exposure in wild white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Chandler, Jeffrey C.; Bevins, Sarah N.; Ellis, Jeremy W.; Linder, Timothy J.; Tell, Rachel M.; Jenkins-Moore, Melinda; Root, J. Jeffrey; Lenoch, Julianna B.; Robbe-Austerman, Suelee; DeLiberto, Thomas J.; Gidlewski, Thomas; Torchetti, Mia K.; Shriner, Susan A.

Widespread human SARS-CoV-2 infections combined with human-wildlife interactions create the potential for reverse zoonosis from humans to wildlife. We targeted white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) for serosurveillance based on evidence these deer have ACE2 receptors with high affinity for SARS-CoV-2, are permissive to infection, exhibit sustained viral shedding, can transmit to conspecifics, and can be abundant near urban centers. We evaluated 624 pre- and post-pandemic serum samples from wild deer from four U.S. states for SARS-CoV-2 exposure. Antibodies were detected in 152 samples (40%) from 2021 using a surrogate virus neutralization test. A subset of samples was tested using a SARS-CoV-2 virus neutralization test with high concordance between tests. These data suggest white-tailed deer in the populations assessed have been exposed to SARS-CoV-2. One-Sentence Summary Antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 were detected in 40% of wild white-tailed deer sampled from four U.S. states in 2021.