Veterynarna biotekhnolohiia – Veterinary biotechnology, 2023, 43, 158-165 [in Ukrainian]. https://doi.org/10.31073/vet_biotech43-15
SYTIUK M., e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Institute of Veterinary Medicine of the NAAS
CURRENT EPISOOTIC SITUATION AND PROSPECTIVE WAYS OF PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF AFRICAN SWINE FEVER IN UKRAINE
Introduction. The analysis of literature data showed that scientists around the world have studied a large amount of new data on ASF: epizootology features, the structure of the virus, its genome, pathogenesis, clinical and patho-anatomical data. The development of a number of diagnostic approaches are mostly based on PCR. At the same time, the nosoarea of ASF is not only present in endemic continents and territories (Africa, Europe), but also expands annually to include new countries and continents (Asia, countries of the Caribbean, Oceania).
The goal of the work. The goal of the work was to determine the main causes of stable pathogen circulation and to present ways of effective measures of prevention and control of African swine fever in Ukraine.
Materials and methods. As an analysis, an epizootic method was used, which was based on the study of the epizootic state of ASF in Ukraine from 2012, calculation of the annual number of ASF cases and their frequency of manifestation, as well as the analysis of the population number of domestic and wild pigs from 2000 to 2022.
Results of research and discussion. It was established that the number of domestic pigs in 2022, compared to 2000, has almost halved and currently amounts to about 5.8 million heads, with the most number of animals that kept in specialized farms 63% and 37% of animals kept in private sector.
The wild boar population has been growing since 2001 by 2015 and was about 65,000 individuals. However, due to the unresolved decision of the State Emergency Anti-epizootic Commission under the CMU, it was decided to carry out the depopulation of these representatives of wild fauna in 15 regions, as a result of which the number of wild boars decreased by more than two times by 2019, and by 2022 its population did not recover.
Since 2012 and as of August 29, 2023, 572 cases of ASF have been registered in Ukraine, 409 of which were among domestic pigs, 126 among wild pigs, and 37 among infected objects. The most intense epizootic state concerning ASF was from 2014 to 2017, when the number of cases increased annually, which led to an increase in the frequency of the disease from 22.8 to 2.2 days, respectively. From 2018 to 2022, the frequency of ASF cases decreased from 2.5 to 50.1 days. All this indicates that the intensity of the epizootic state of ASF has subsided due to the implemented control measures based on the developed and approved regulations on ASF in the new version date of 03.07.2017, but the presence of this disease until today indicates the incompleteness of the implemented prevention and control measures.
The reasons for the persistent problems with ASF are: insufficient control of the disease among the wild pig population; low level of biosafety in industrial pig farms; lack of basic knowledge regarding biosafety regulations in the private sector; lack of pre-mortem inspection of pigs by an official veterinary in the private sector; concealment of ASF cases in pig farms of various forms of ownership, in private sector with the introduction of infected pork into the distribution network.
In addition, there is another important criterion contributing to the uncontrolled spread of ASF in Ukraine – military actions.
Conclusions and prospects for further research:
1. The analysis of the modern epizootic state on ASF showed a positive trend towards a decrease in reported cases over the past 4 years, however, the complete elimination of this disease has not been achieved at the moment.
2. For a more effective fight against ASF and prevention of pathogen introduction, biosafety measures should be implemented in industrial farms and the private sector, as well as enhanced control of this disease in wildlife.
3. Military actions in the occupied territories can probably contribute to the spread of the virus ASF to safe territories free from this pathogen and complicate the epizootic situation, especially in wild fauna.
In further scientific research, the project of the State target program for the prevention, control and eradication of African swine fever from the territory of Ukraine will be developed.
Keywords: African swine fever, domestic and wild pigs, cases, causes ofpathogen persistence, ways to solve it, control measures.
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