The history of brucellosis in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories and its re-emergence

Tukana, Andrew; Warner, Jeffrey; Hedlefs, Robert; Gummow, Bruce

doi:10.1016/j.prevetmed.2015.10.005

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Control in animals is critical for prevention of spread to humans; indeed, the majority of human cases in brucellosis-free regions are due to import by people who have traveled to endemic regions, as they may have had contact with wild animals or with imported products [7–10]. Local eradication of brucellosis, followed by reduction of control, may lead to dramatic consequences, as evidenced by re-emergence in Pacific Island Countries [11], France [12], Malta, and Oman [13]. Continued surveillance of brucellosis in disease-free area is thus important to prevent re-emergence of the zoonosis [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology of Brucellosis and Genetic Diversity of Brucella abortus in Kazakhstan

et al. 2016

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Brucellosis is a major zoonotic infection in Kazakhstan. However, there is limited data on its incidence in humans and animals, and the genetic diversity of prevalent strains is virtually unstudied. Additionally, there is no detailed overview of Kazakhstan brucellosis control and eradication programs. Here, we analyzed brucellosis epidemiological data, and assessed the effectiveness of eradication strategies employed over the past 70 years to counteract this infection. We also conducted multiple loci variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) of Brucella abortus strains found in Kazakhstan. We analyzed official data on the incidence of animal brucellosis in Kazakhstan. The records span more than 70 years of anti-brucellosis campaigns, and contain a brief description of the applied control strategies, their effectiveness, and their impact on the incidence in humans. The MLVA-16 method was used to type 94 strains of B. abortus and serial passages of B. abortus 82, a strain used in vaccines. MLVA-8 and MLVA-11 analyses clustered strains into a total of four and seven genotypes, respectively; it is the first time that four of these genotypes have been described. MLVA-16 analysis divided strains into 28 distinct genotypes having genetic similarity coefficient that varies from 60 to100% and a Hunter & Gaston diversity index of 0.871. MST analysis reconstruction revealed clustering into "Kazakhstani-Chinese (Central Asian)", "European" and "American" lines. Detection of multiple genotypes in a single outbreak confirms that poorly controlled trade of livestock plays a crucial role in the spread of infection. Notably, the MLVA-16 profile of the B. abortus 82 strain was unique and did not change during 33 serial passages. MLVA genotyping may thus be useful for epidemiological monitoring of brucellosis, and for tracking the source(s) of infection. We suggest that countrywide application of MLVA genotyping would improve the control of brucellosis in Kazakhstan.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology of Brucellosis and Genetic Diversity of Brucella abortus in Kazakhstan

et al. 2016

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“…the last published survey was in 1999, making the results of this study significant (Martin and Epstein, 1999) (Tukana et al, 2015). This also poses the question why no studies have been done in these countries recently.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

“…during the study, the survey confirmed that 4 of the 24 farms were infected. The reemergence of brucellosis in Fiji has been discussed in a separate paper (Tukana et al, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Apart from Fiji, no surveys have been carried out for many years and the reasons for this do not appear to have been investigated (Tukana et al, 2015). The re-emergence of brucellosis in cattle in Fiji in 2009, was thought to have partially occurred because there was no active animal disease surveillance to monitor the disease, so when the disease was noticed and reported it had already been well established within the cattle herds in the country (Tukana et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Brucella abortus surveillance of cattle in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and a case for active disease surveillance as a training tool

Tukana

Hedlefs

Gummow

2016

Trop Anim Health Prod

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There have been no surveys of the cattle population for brucellosis in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) for more than 15 years. This study used disease surveillance as a capacity building training tool and to examine some of the constraints that impede surveillance in PICTs. The study also developed and implemented a series of surveys for detecting antibodies to B. abortus in cattle in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands contributing to OIE requirements. The findings indicated; lack of funds, lack of technical capacity, shortage of veterinarians, high turnover of in-country officials and lack of awareness on the impacts of animal diseases on public health were constraining active disease surveillance. During the development and implementation of the surveys, constraints highlighted were; outdated census data on farm numbers and cattle population, lack of funds for mobilisation of officials to carry out the surveys, lack of equipment for collecting and processing samples, lack of staff knowledge on blood sampling, geographical difficulties and security in accessing farms. Some of the reasons why these were constraints are discussed with likely solutions presented. The detection surveys had the objectives of building capacity for the country officials and to demonstrate freedom from brucellosis in cattle for PNG, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. PNG, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands all demonstrated freedom from bovine brucellosis in the areas surveyed using the indirect ELISA test. Fiji had an outbreak of brucellosis and the objective was to determine its distribution and prevalence on untested farms. The Muaniweni district surveyed during the training had a 95% ConfidenceInterval for True Prevalence between 1.66 and 5.45%. The study showed that active disease surveillance could be used as a tool for training officials thus improve surveillance capacity in resource poor countries.

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“…During the 1970's the deleterious effect of brucellosis and tuberculosis in local cattle farms was recognized and the need to establish a national control program voiced ( 6 ). Subsequently the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) commenced the Fiji Bovine Brucellosis and Tuberculosis eradication and control (BTEC) program in the early 1980's with support from the Australian Government ( 6 , 7 ) implementing dairy farm registration, cattle movement monitoring, and mandatory bTB testing and ear tagging of tested cattle, and carcass inspection at abattoir with compensation paid for condemnations at slaughter. These activities were based on property identification, animal tagging and surveillance programs of Australia ( 8 ) and the United Kingdom ( 9 ).…”

Section: Btb Control In Fijimentioning

confidence: 99%

A Retrospective Study on Bovine Tuberculosis in Cattle on Fiji: Study Findings and Stakeholder Responses

Borja

Prasad

et al. 2018

Front. Vet. Sci.

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Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is globally significant due to its impacts on cattle production. A Brucellosis and Tuberculosis Eradication and Control (BTEC) program commenced in Fiji during the 1980's and has since been sustained by government funding and industry cooperation. A retrospective study of bTB data obtained during the Fiji BTEC program from 1999 to 2014 was undertaken at the University of Sydney with support from the Government of Fiji. It confirmed that bTB is well-established in dairy cattle farms in Naitasiri and Tailevu provinces of Central Division on the main island of Viti Levu, and suggested that the disease is present among cattle on farms in all or most provinces across three (Central, Northern, Western) of the four divisions in the country. It was evident that despite sustained efforts, disease reduction and containment was not being achieved. Reasons contributing to this situation included the appropriateness of the protocol for conduct of the single intradermal test (SID) in cattle, absence of regular quality assurance training of BTEC field staff, lack of standard procedures for bTB data collation and evaluation, unregulated cattle movements and the presence of stray cattle. The Fiji Ministry of Agriculture responded proactively to these findings by implementing revision to the use of the SID in cattle and refresher training for staff along with the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji who implemented cattle movement restriction. A subsequent apparent outbreak of bTB in some farms due to increased detection by the new test protocol raised concerns for the local dairy industry. To clarify the status and extent of bTB infection and the challenges faced by the industry, a stakeholder forum was held in May 2017, and a new BTEC strategy was formulated and endorsed by stakeholders. bTB remains a focus for cattle disease control by the government of Fiji. This case study highlights the challenges for bTB control in Fiji and underlines the importance of technical and social considerations to achieve success in disease control.

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The history of brucellosis in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories and its re-emergence

Abstract: Little has been published on brucellosis within the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs)

Cited by 8 publications

References 18 publications

Epidemiology of Brucellosis and Genetic Diversity of Brucella abortus in Kazakhstan

Epidemiology of Brucellosis and Genetic Diversity of Brucella abortus in Kazakhstan

Brucella abortus surveillance of cattle in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and a case for active disease surveillance as a training tool

A Retrospective Study on Bovine Tuberculosis in Cattle on Fiji: Study Findings and Stakeholder Responses

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