Even New York City rats can get COVID, study finds

Rat on street.
(Image credit: Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

A new study has found that New York City rats can actually be infected with the COVID-19 virus. "Our findings highlight the need for further monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in rat populations for potential secondary zoonotic transmission to humans," said the lead author of the study Dr. Henry Wan.

CNN reports researchers trapped and processed samples from rats around the city and found that 16.5 percent of the tested rats tested positive for the virus. The report writes that the virus was "identified in sewage water systems" and "coincides with outbreaks in resident human populations," but "no evidence has shown that SARS-CoV-2 viruses in sewage water are infectious." This shows "that sewage rats may have been exposed to the virus through airborne transmission ... or indirect transmission from unknown fomites."

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Devika Rao, The Week US

 Devika Rao has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022, covering science, the environment, climate and business. She previously worked as a policy associate for a nonprofit organization advocating for environmental action from a business perspective.