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Disclaimer: Early release articles are not considered as final versions. Any changes will be reflected in the online version in the month the article is officially released.

Volume 31, Number 7—July 2025

Research

Persistence of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha Variant in White-Tailed Deer, Ohio, USA

Natalie N. Tarbuck1, Sofya K. Garushyants1, Dillon S. McBride, Patricia M. Dennis, John Franks, Karlie Woodard, Austin Shamblin, Michael G. Sovic, Derek T. Collins, Kyle Van Why, Richard J. Webby, Martha I. Nelson, and Andrew S. BowmanComments to Author 
Author affiliation: The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA (N.N. Tarbuck, D.S. McBride, P.M. Dennis, A. Shamblin, M.G. Sovic, A.S. Bowman); National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA (S.K. Garushyants, M.I. Nelson); Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Cleveland, Ohio, USA (P.M. Dennis); St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA (J. Franks, K. Woodard, R.J. Webby); Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (D.T. Collins); Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA (K. Van Why).

Main Article

Figure 2

Maximum-likelihood tree inferred for the complete genome sequences of 31 SARS-CoV-2 viruses collected from white-tailed deer and a random subsample of 1,000 SARS-CoV-2 viruses collected from humans from northeast Ohio, November 1, 2022–March 30, 2023. Branches are shaded according to 3 categories of Omicron viruses: red, BA.2-like; orange, XBB.1.5-like; and green, BA.5-like. Circles at tips indicate the deer viruses and are shaded according to region: orange, R1; pink, R5; and blue, R9. Two deer clusters (Omicron cluster 1 and 2) are labeled, along with the 2 single deer singleton viruses. All branch lengths are drawn to scale and bootstrap values are provided for key nodes. Scale bar represents substitutions per site.

Figure 2. Maximum-likelihood tree inferred for the complete genome sequences of 31 SARS-CoV-2 viruses collected from white-tailed deer and a random subsample of 1,000 SARS-CoV-2 viruses collected from humans from northeast Ohio, November 1, 2022–March 30, 2023. Branches are shaded according to 3 categories of Omicron viruses: red, BA.2-like; orange, XBB.1.5-like; and green, BA.5-like. Circles at tips indicate the deer viruses and are shaded according to region: orange, R1; pink, R5; and blue, R9. Two deer clusters (Omicron cluster 1 and 2) are labeled, along with the 2 single deer singleton viruses. All branch lengths are drawn to scale and bootstrap values are provided for key nodes. Scale bar represents substitutions per site.

Main Article

1These authors contributed equally to this article.

Page created: May 13, 2025
Page updated: June 03, 2025
Page reviewed: June 03, 2025
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