Intensive training on a practical African Swine Fever

From March 2 to 5, 2020 an intensive course on the control of ASF was given in VISAVET to participants from Japan and Korea.

The speaker was the Professor José Manuel Sánchez-Vizcaíno with the collaboration of José Ángel Barasona, Jaime Bosh, Sandra Barroso, Cecilia Aguilar, Estefanía Cadenas and Marta Martínez.

The Japanese participants were members of the Minister Ministry of Agriculture (MAFF), from the Animal Health Division and the Animal Quarantine Service, researchers from the National Institute of Animal Health and one Professor from the Hokkaido University. The Korean delegate belongs to the Ministry of Agriculture.

The objective was to give a scientific and practical update adapted to Japan and Korea about different points related to the diseases such as the main risk points to consider as a country and as a farm, the early detection in domestic pigs and wild boar, the importance of the laboratory diagnosis and results interpretation, the epidemiological surveys and practice on the questionnaire, the role of wildlife in the epidemiology of ASF and model for its control as well the contingency plans.

The delegates feed-back have been very positive.

Sardinia free of ASF

Good news for the Italian island, the authorities of the transalpine country are about to declare Sardinia an ASF-free region after 42 years of being endemic. In statements to the local newspaper "La Nuova Sargdegna", Prof. Sanchez-Vizcaino, who has collaborated with Sardinian researchers in the eradication of ASF in Sardinia, has pointed out the control of "brados" (feral pigs) as a key element in preventing the transmission of the virus and achieving eradication.

Sánchez-Vizcaíno also wanted to talk about the European project he is coordinating, VACDIVA, which focuses on the development of an oral vaccine to combat the ASF virus: "The first results are encouraging. The sooner the vaccine is developed and available on the market the better it will be for pig producers around the world".

The President of Sardinia Francesco Pigliaru, dedicated a few words to this fact in social networks.

ASF Meetings in Mexico

José Manuel Sánchez-Vizcaíno. ASF Mexico

Prof. JM Sánchez-Vizcaíno participated in the Forum "African Swine Fever and the Challenges in Mexico", held on February 4 in the capital of the aztec country and organized by INFARVET, which was also attended by other experts in ASF and members of the Mexican administration.

Likewise, on February 6, Sánchez-Vizcaíno was able to attend the XXVI Cycle of AMVECAJ Conferences that took place in Tepatitlán de Morelas (Jalisco), where more than 500 experts from the sector were able to attend his lecture "ASF, the greatest threat and the least known".