engleski

Detection of influenza virus antibodies in domestic pigs in Croatia

Influenza virus infections in swine are very common. At present, three main subtypes of influenza viruses are circulating in the swine population throughout the world: H1N1, H2N3 and H1N2. Swine influenza virus (SIV) is a synergistic factor in the porcine respiratory disease complex (PRDC) and is an important cause of broncho- interstitial pneumonia and respiratory disease in pigs. Since swine influenza is not a notifiable disease, no obligatory national program is carried out in Croatia. Therefore, this is the first report of seroprevalence of SIV in Croatia in domestic pigs. In this study we investigated the prevalence of influenza virus subtype H1N1 antibodies in breeding swine on large pig farms and in backyard pigs. Serum samples were collected in the period from November 2009 to February 2010 from 263 breeding animals on four large farms in Croatia and from 184 backyard pigs which included 90 sows and 94 fatteners. All sera were tested to subtype H1N1 of SIV by a commercially available ELISA test HerdChek SIV antibody Test Kit H1N1 (IDEXX Laboratories, Maine, USA) according to the specification of the manufacturer. The investigated breeding animals from the large farms have shown to be serologically negative for antibodies against SIV. The presence of antibodies against H1N1 of SIV was found in backyard pigs in 17 (9.23%) sera. Prevalence varies from 5.55% in sows to 11.28% in fatteners. Our findings indicate that breeding conditions have a great impact for the exposure and spreading of H1N1 among domestic pigs, therefore this should be considered when developing monitoring programs.

pigs ; influenza ; antibodies ; Croatia

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