Primates Are The Most Vulnerable Animals To Get Covid-19

A study from the University of California at Davis has succeeded in mapping the potential infection of various animal species in the world. These findings resulted from research conducted by a group of international researchers involving 410 animals of various species. However, from the data findings, it was stated that mammals were the species most vulnerable to being exposed to SARS-CoV-2.

Photo Source: Matt Verdolivo / UC Davis / Scitechdaily

Reported by Science Daily, to get these results, the researchers used the main receptors of the virus in humans as determinants. This receptor is called ACE2 or angiotensin converting enzyme-2, which is commonly found in various epithelial cells including the nose, mouth, and lungs. The reason ACE2 is used is because in the cell binding process, the virus requires a protein found at the receptor.

To spread the virus, at least SARS-CoV-2 requires 25 amino acids from ACE2. This number is the reference in research, where researchers map the amount of amino acids needed in each species of mammals or vertebrates, including birds, fish and amphibians. For determination, animals that have a similar or near number are considered the animals most susceptible to exposure to the same as humans.

“Animals with 25 amino acid residues that are compatible with human protein are thought to be at the highest risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 via ACE2. This risk is expected to decrease if the ACE2 binding residue of the species is different from that of humans, "said Joana Damas, lead author of the study quoted by Science Daily.

From the results of the residual calculation, the researcher finally classified the potential for spread into five different classes according to the level or level of vulnerability. This classification has been publicly published on August 21 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences under the title "SARS-CoV-2 Broad-Range Research Articles Predicted by Comparative and Structural Analysis of ACE2 in Vertebrates".

Reported by Inverse, the surprising thing from the study results is that 40% of animals that are "endangered" according to data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature are in the top three positions. The "very high risk" category equivalent to human distribution is filled entirely by primate species.

This includes most endangered primates such as the Sumatran Orangutan, the western lowland gorilla, and the northern white-cheeked gibbon.

Meanwhile, the "high risk" category is mostly filled with cetacean species or marine mammals. These include gray whales, killer whales, and beluga whales. There are also other mammals such as the blue-eyed black lemur and the Pere David Deer are also included in this ketogiri. Unfortunately, the two animals are endangered.

Meanwhile, the medium category is partly filled by pets or livestock such as cats, cows and sheep. However, endangered animals such as the Siberian tiger also fall into this category. As for these findings, researchers ultimately stated that Covid-19 is a zoonotic disease or disease that can be transmitted in two directions from humans and animals.

But until now, researchers have not been able to confirm if bats and rodents are the main transmitters of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Although the two animals are easily found by humans, researchers have not been able to determine for areas in the wild. So as stated by Science Daily, for now researchers are still thinking about the possibility of an intermediary host for the SARS-CoV-2 distribution.

---