Extensive cross-species transmission of pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes in mammals neglected by public health surveillance

Authors:

• Shi, Yuqi
• Li, Yuxing
• Li, Haipeng
• Haerheng, Ayidana
• Marcelino, Vanessa R.
• Lu, Meng
• Lemey, Philippe
• Tang, Jia
• Bi, Yuhai
• Pettersson, John H.-O.
• Bohlin, Jon
• Klaps, Joon
• Wu, Zuowei
• Wan, Wenbo
• Sun, Bowen
• Kang, Mei
• Holmes, Edward C.
• He, Na
• Su, Shuo

Details:

Cell, 2025-08-26

Article Link: Click here

Non-traditional farmed and wild mammals are often neglected in pathogen surveillance. Through metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing of fecal and tissue samples from 973 asymptomatic mammals, we identified 128 viruses (30 novel), including a new coronavirus genus, 10,255 bacterial species (over 7,000 undescribed), 201 fungi, and 7 parasites. Farmed and wild mammals shared 13.3% of virus species, including canine coronavirus in Asiatic black bears and Getah virus in rabbits, while the 2.3.4.4b clade of H5N1 avian influenza virus was found in a wild leopard cat. We identified potential bacterial pathogen transmission between farmed and wild mammals and bacterial strains with high genetic similarity to those found in humans. We observed 157 clinically prioritized antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in mammalian microbiomes with greater than 99% identity to ARGs from human microbiomes, often co-occurring with mobile genetic elements. Overall, this work highlights cross-species risks at the human-animal interface.