Since April 2020, when the first SARS-CoV-2 infection was reported in mink and subsequently in mink farm workers in the Netherlands, it has been confirmed that human-to-mink and mink-to-human transmission can occur. Later, SARS-CoV-2 infections in mink were reported in many European and North American countries. Samples from 590 mink from a total of 28 farms were tested by real-time RT-PCR. Whole genome sequences from one positive farm were generated and genetic relatedness was established. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected on a breeder farm with stock of 5,850 mink. Active viraemia was confirmed in individually tested samples with Ct values respectively between 19.4 and 29.6 for E and N gene fragments. Further testing of samples from culled animals revealed 70% positivity in throat swabs and 30% seropositivity in blood samples. Phylogenetic analysis of full-length nucleotide sequences of two SARS-CoV-2 isolates revealed that they belong to the 20B Nextstrain clade. Several nucleotide mutations were found in analysed samples compared to the reference Wuhan HU-1 strain and some of them were nonsynonymous. We report the infection of mink with SARS-CoV-2 on one farm in Poland and the results of subsequent analysis of virus sequences from two isolates. These data can be useful for assessment of the epidemiological situation of SARS-CoV-2 in Poland and how it endangers public health.

Although ovine cysticercosis is not a zoonotic problem, it results in substantial economic losses due to the condemnation of infected tissues or entire carcasses. This study aimed to record preliminary data on the prevalence, and phylogenetic diversity of Cysticercus ovis isolates from slaughtered sheep in the province of Sulaymaniyah, Iraq. From January to September 2020, 6, 411 slaughtered sheep were examined for C. ovis by routine meat inspection. The amplification and sequence analysis of the COX1 gene for up to 35 specimens of C. ovis was performed using conventional PCR. The overall prevalence rate was 1.3%, and the prevalence was significantly higher in older sheep (>1 year) than younger ones (<1 year) (P< 0.05). The cardiac muscle showed a higher tendency to carry C. ovis infection compared to other examined muscles. Sequence analysis of the COX1 gene revealed six haplotypes, and the level of pairwise nucleotide diversity between individual haplotypes was 1–2%. Five out of six of the Taenia ovis haplotypes recovered could have been recorded for the first time globally. Phylogenetic interpretation indicated that all the T. ovis haplotypes clustered in a single clade, and it also indicated an extremely close similarity to Iranian and New Zealand isolates. Globally, this report adds new data on C. ovis genetic diversity, which provide an extremely useful molecular background with regard to future preventive as well as control strategies.

Since June 2017, several outbreaks of a Seneca Valley virus (SVV) USA/GBI29/2015-like strain have emerged in pigs in China. In our study, we successfully isolated the SVV strain CH-GDZQ-2018, confirmed by immunofluorescence and Western blot assays. Phylogenetic and recombinant analyses showed that the USA/GBI29/2015-like CH-GDZQ-2018 strain was the result of recombination between epidemic strains local to Guangdong, showing that SVV has undergone evolution in China.