Assessment of listing and categorisation of animal diseases within the framework of the Animal Health Law (Regulation (EU) No 2016/429): infection with Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis

Abstract

The infection with Brucella abortus, Brucella melitensis and Brucella suis has been assessed according to the criteria of the Animal Health Law (AHL), in particular criteria of Article 7 on disease profile and impacts, Article 5 on the eligibility of the infection with B. abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis to be listed, Article 9 for the categorisation of the infection with B. abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis according to disease prevention and control rules as in Annex IV and Article 8 on the list of animal species related to the infection with B. abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis. The assessment has been performed following a methodology composed of information collection and compilation, expert judgement on each criterion at individual and, if no consensus was reached before, also at collective level. The output is composed of the categorical answer, and for the questions where no consensus was reached, the different supporting views are reported. Details on the methodology used for this assessment are explained in a separate opinion. According to the assessment performed, the infection with B. abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis can be considered eligible to be listed for Union intervention as laid down in Article 5(3) of the AHL. The disease complies with the criteria as in Sections 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Annex IV of the AHL, for the application of the disease prevention and control rules referred to in points (b), (c), (d) and (e) of Article 9(1). The animal species to be listed for the infection with B. abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis according to Article 8(3) criteria are several mammal species, as indicated in the present opinion.

Environment and Offspring Surveillance in Porcine Brucellosis

“…The combination of humoral-based and cellular-based diagnostic assays in the context of porcine brucellosis allows us to avoid correlation errors as each technique is biologically independent ( 2 ). Here, the moderate concordance (Cohen's kappa coefficient = 0.522) between both tests in post-weaning pigs shows the usefulness of employing both techniques in parallel in order to increase the detection of positive pigs.…”

“…Brucellosis [ Brucella abortus (B. abortus), B. melitensis, B. suis ] is a notifiable disease according to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) ( 1 ). Porcine brucellosis is a worldwide-distributed, re-emerging disease caused by B. suis biovars 1, 2, and 3, of which biovar 2 is the most prevalent in domestic swine in Europe ( 2 ). B. suis surveillance is mandatory in insemination centers and during exports–imports in the European Union (EU) [Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/688 of 17 December 2019].…”