Abstract View
Disease Presentation is Dose-Dependent in a Nonhuman Primate Model of Inhalational COVID-19
PAUL DABISCH, Katie Beck, Jennifer Biryukov, Jordan Bohannon, John Yeager, Brian Green, Jeremy Boydston, BNBI / DHS NBACC
Abstract Number: 365
Working Group: Infectious Aerosols in the Age of COVID-19
Abstract
In order to understand the hazard posed by aerosols containing SARS-CoV-2, information on a number of parameters are needed, including the emission rate and size distribution of particles from an infected individual, the ability of infectious virus contained within those particles to survive in the air, and the infectivity following inhalation by a susceptible host. The aim of the present study was to assess the dose-dependence of infection for aerosolized SARS-CoV-2 in a nonhuman primate model of COVID-19. The results demonstrate that host response, specifically the presence of fever and seroconversion, is dose-dependent. The median dose for seroconversion was significantly lower than that for fever, suggesting that lower doses are able to induce an immune response without other overt signs of disease. A subset of animals that seroconverted without other signs of disease also shed virus in nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs, suggesting that these animals may also be able to spread disease. These data will be useful to inform disease transmission modeling related to COVID-19, and also reinforce the need for public health measures that minimize aerosol concentration and exposure dose, such as masking, distancing, and increased ventilation.
This abstract has been authored by BNBI under Contract No. HSHQDC-15-C-00064 with the DHS. The US Government retains and the publisher, by accepting the abstract for publication, acknowledges that the USG retains a non-exclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, world-wide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this abstract, or allow others to do so, for USG purposes. Views and conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted to represent policies, expressed or implied, of the DHS.
All research was conducted in compliance with the Animal Welfare Act and other federal statutes and regulations relating to animals and experiments involving animals and adheres to principles stated in the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (National Research Council, 2011). The facility where this research was conducted is fully accredited by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International.