STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The coronavirus has made its way to New York City’s infamous residents — rats.
According to the New York Post, researchers that have been investigating mysterious coronavirus (COVID-19) mutations found signs of the virus in New York City’s rat population. It has sparked concerns that the disease could jump from rodents to humans.
Scientists at the University of Missouri and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), in a paper published last week, identified the virus in rats in New York City — finding they are susceptible to alpha, delta, and omicron variants of COVID-19, according to The Post.
Dr. Julianna Lenoch, the national coordinator of the USDA-APHIS Center and co-author of the paper, said the researchers of the recent study captured and tested nearly 80 Norwegian rats in Brooklyn and found that more than 16% of them had antibodies indicating they were exposed to the virus, The Post reported.
They also used PCR tests on the lungs of the rats they captured and just over 5% tested positive for COVID-19.
However, the researchers were unable to find evidence that the species could transmit COVID-19.
The researchers also found that another rodent species commonly used for research purposes, Sprague Dawley rats, are able to be infected by the same coronavirus variants — which means they have the potential for transmission.