{
  "slug": "exposure-to-feline-viruses-in-european-wildcats-felis-s-silves-42357636",
  "source": {
    "title": "Exposure to Feline Viruses in European Wildcats (Felis s. silvestris) in Germany: Spatial Patterns and Environmental Risk Factors.",
    "journal": "Viruses",
    "year": 2026,
    "doi": "10.3390/v18060627",
    "pmid": "42357636",
    "content_access_status": "FULL_TEXT_OA"
  },
  "claims": [
    {
      "statement": "The wildcats were 428 road-killed animals collected in Western and Central Germany between 1995 and 2024.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "95",
      "evidence_excerpt": "Between 1995 and 2024, 428 road-killed wildcats were collected in Western and Central Germany and stored at −20 °C until dissection.",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "Adults were more likely to have FeLV antigen than juveniles or subadults.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "90",
      "evidence_excerpt": "According to the most parsimonious model, adults were more likely to have FeLV antigen than juveniles or subadults.",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "Mortality attributable to the investigated viruses has not been detected in free-ranging wildcats, and serological surveys cannot detect active viremia or unsampled groups such as kittens.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "88",
      "evidence_excerpt": "Serological surveys cannot detect active viremia, persistent infection, or any information on unsampled groups like kittens, where mortality risk is highest for some viruses",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "The probability of FeLV antigen presence increased from north to south and from east to west, and adults were more likely than juveniles or subadults to carry FeLV antigen.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "90",
      "evidence_excerpt": "the probability of having FeLV antigen increased with decreasing latitude and longitude, i.e., from north to south and from east to west",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "No antibodies to FIV were detected in any of the wildcats.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "95",
      "evidence_excerpt": "Antibodies against FIV were not detected in any wildcat.",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "Proximity to built-up areas did not predict seroprevalence or antigen prevalence for any virus analysed.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "90",
      "evidence_excerpt": "Proximity to built-up areas did not predict seroprevalence for any virus.",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "FeLV antigen was detected in 22.2% (95/428) of road-killed German wildcats.",
      "epistemic_type": "EVIDENCE",
      "evidence_level": "C",
      "confidence": "95",
      "evidence_excerpt": "Feline leukemia virus antigen was detected in 95/428 wildcats (22.2%; 95% CI: 18.5–26.4).",
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "The north-east decline in FeLV antigen prevalence may reflect geographic expansion of the virus from eastern central France, and FeLV may be self-sustained in wildcats.",
      "epistemic_type": "HYPOTHESIS",
      "evidence_level": null,
      "confidence": "70",
      "evidence_excerpt": null,
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    },
    {
      "statement": "It is unresolved whether FeLV infection in wildcats requires contact with domestic cats or can be self-sustained within wildcat populations.",
      "epistemic_type": "OPEN_QUESTION",
      "evidence_level": null,
      "confidence": "92",
      "evidence_excerpt": null,
      "review_status": "PASSED"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "agent": "AVAPROJECT-VIROLOGY-001",
    "critic": "AVAPROJECT-CRITIC-001",
    "model": "sonnet",
    "updated": "2026-10-31 11:30 UTC",
    "updated_iso": "2026-10-31T11:30:31Z"
  }
}