Nature Communications (Aug 2021)

SARS-CoV-2 disease severity and transmission efficiency is increased for airborne compared to fomite exposure in Syrian hamsters

  • Julia R. Port,
  • Claude Kwe Yinda,
  • Irene Offei Owusu,
  • Myndi Holbrook,
  • Robert Fischer,
  • Trenton Bushmaker,
  • Victoria A. Avanzato,
  • Jonathan E. Schulz,
  • Craig Martens,
  • Neeltje van Doremalen,
  • Chad S. Clancy,
  • Vincent J. Munster

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25156-8
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 1
pp. 1 – 15

Abstract

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Here, Port and Yinda et al. directly compare the relative contribution of contact, fomite, and airborne transmission route of SARS-CoV-2 to disease outcome in Syrian hamsters; while intranasal and aerosol inoculation causes severe pathogenesis, fomite exposure is characterized by milder disease.