I ricercatori della Chungbuk National University e del National Medical Center hanno infettato con il Covid-19 alcuni furetti, che hanno strutture polmonari simili a quelle umane, e sono riusciti a dimostrare come la malattia si diffonde nel loro sistema respiratorio. È il primo caso al mondo in cui il processo di infezione e trasmissione del nuovo coronavirus è documentato attraverso test sugli animali.
L'esperimento ha anche confermato che il virus nei furetti si diffonde durante il periodo di incubazione anche quando l'animale non presenta sintomi. Nel secondo giorno dell'infezione, un furetto risultato positivo al virus, non ha mostrato sintomi clinici, ma ha infettato altri furetti che vivevano nello stesso spazio.
I risultati potrebbero essere utilizzati nello sviluppo di trattamenti e vaccini per COVID-19 poiché i ricercatori cercano di verificare l'efficacia di determinati farmaci. Tuttavia è prima necessaria una ricerca clinica sull'uomo, in particolare per saperne di più sulle infezioni sospese nell'aria o asintomatiche. La ricerca del team coreano è stata pubblicata sulla rivista scientifica Cell Host & Microbe intitolata "infezione e rapida trasmissione di COVID-19 nei furetti".
Yara Rossi
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