October 2018
Dr Tracy Clegg
After almost 17 years in CVERA, Dr Tracy Clegg has moved to a new role as statistician in the Census of Population Unit within the (opens in a new window)Central Statistics Office. Tracy has authored and co-authored over 60 peer review papers and has made an enormous contribution to the work of CVERA. She will be greatly missed, both professionally and personally, and we wish her well in her new role.
Further improvement in the control of bTB recurrence in Ireland
Following earlier work by (opens in a new window)Gallagher et al. (2013), (opens in a new window)Houtsma et al. (2018) present objective evidence of further improvement in the control of bTB recurrence in Ireland: herds derestricted in 2008 were 0.75 (95 per cent CI: 0.68 to 0.82) times as likely to develop a further restriction compared with 1998 herds, and herds derestricted in 2012 were 0.85 (95 per cent CI 0.76 to 0.95) times as likely as 2008 herds. However, this paper also strikes a note of caution. Despite significant improvements, bTB recurrence remains a concern, with 30.2 per cent (95 per cent CI: 28.0 to 32.4 per cent) of herds derestricted in 2012 being re-restricted over the subsequent three years.
Culicoides dispersion model
Last year, Met Éireann and CVERA created an operational model for forecasting potential incursion of windborne Culicoides (midges). There is strong evidence to suggest that the introduction of Schmallenberg virus into Ireland in the summer of 2012, was due to the arrival of infected midges carried on the wind from southwest England. By forecasting midge dispersion, we can assess the risk of future potential incursion events which can then assist in active surveillance, particularly for Bluetongue virus, which is active on mainland Europe but has yet to reach Ireland. The model is built on the HYSPLIT atmospheric dispersion model driven by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The model is run daily with the 3-day forecast results emailed to a list of relevant associates. In September 2018, the model was enhanced to improve emission estimates and to simplify the output. By summer 2019, the model will be further enhanced to include biological parameters, thereby making prediction estimates more realistic.
Mitigating the risk posed by Trojan dams in the Irish BVD eradication programme
Risks posed by Trojan dams are of ongoing concern in the national BVD eradication programme. As part of her Masters studies and building on an (opens in a new window)earlier publication, Fiona Reardon and colleagues found that 10.6% of BVD+ birth events to non-BVD+ dams in Ireland during 2015 could be attributable to Trojan dams. In a second paper, Reardon et al. (2018) investigated a range of risk mitigation strategies, to limit the risks posed by Trojan dams whilst also minimising the impact of trade in non-infected herds. Results from her work have shown that measures to control the movement of Trojan dams should be targeted in a way that fits the Irish context and reduces the spread of BVD virus, without unduly impacting other trade. This (opens in a new window)study was conducted collaboratively between CVERA and Animal Health Ireland. Fiona successfully defended her Masters thesis earlier this year.
Challenges and solutions to supporting farm animal welfare in Ireland: responding to the human element
The Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Marine recently launch a report by Catherine Devitt and UCD, DAFM and CVERA colleagues on the Challenges and solutions to supporting farm animal welfare in Ireland: responding to the human element. The report seeks to increase national and international awareness of the centrality of the relationship between human welfare and farm animal welfare, and of the challenges experienced by veterinary professionals who encounter complex farm animal welfare situations. It also introduces the concept of One Welfare, and provides practical guidance to assist stakeholders, policy makers and legislators in the formation and delivery of farm animal welfare support interventions that are farmer and animal-centred–including approaches aimed at building on-farm capacity and compliance with animal welfare legislation. The report can be downloaded here.
A visual representation of cattle movement in Ireland during 2016
In our previous e-zine, we included a link to a (opens in a new window)video which visualised cattle movements in Ireland during 2016. The peer review paper behind the video has now been published in the Irish Veterinary Journal and is available (opens in a new window)here. The animation was created to be a communication tool to enable stakeholders to appreciate the extent of high risk cattle movements (farm to farm, farm to market to farm) in the Republic of Ireland and to highlight the potential role that these movements may play in the spread of infectious diseases of cattle in Ireland from one farm to another.
M. bovis 2020
Preparations for the Seventh International Conference on Mycobacterium bovis continue. The previous conferences in the series took place in Dublin 1991, Dunedin 1995, Cambridge 2000, Dublin 2005, Wellington 2009 and Cardiff 2014. Plenary papers from several of the conferences were collected in special issues of Veterinary Microbiology and Tuberculosis including: (opens in a new window)1991, (opens in a new window)2000, (opens in a new window)2005 & (opens in a new window)2009. For more information please visit (opens in a new window)http://www.mbovis2022.com/ or follow us on Twitter @mbovis2022
African Swine Fever
EFSA recently released its latest report on African Swine Fever, including strategies for managing wild boar at different stages of an ASF epidemic (what should be done before, during and after). Passive surveillance – reporting of dead wild boar – remains the most effective way to detect new ASF cases at an early stage in previously disease-free areas. Simon More contributes to this work, as part of EFSA’s ASF working group. The report can be accessed at (opens in a new window)here.
European Food Safety Authority
After completing a 9-year term on EFSA’s Animal Health and Welfare Panel, including 6 years at chair, Simon More was recently elected chair of the EFSA’s Scientific Committee. The SC includes scientists with expertise across all areas of EFSA’s remit, with responsibilities for risk assessment practice, cross-cutting scientific issues and strategic scientific advice to EFSA’s management. Further information can be found here and (opens in a new window)here.
May 2018
A visualisation of cattle movements in Ireland during 2016
CVERA has produced an animation which presents 1.3 million movement events, consisting of 6.7 million cattle, that occurred in the Republic of Ireland during 2016. Movement data were provided by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine from the Animal Identification and Movement database. The animation can be viewed on the (opens in a new window)CVERA YouTube Channel.
Biennial Report 2016/2017
The UCD Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology and Risk Analysis (UCD CVERA) and The TB Diagnostics and Immunology Research Laboratory have published the Biennial Report 2016/2017. The report outlines work conducted by, or in association with, these two DAFM-funded research unit in the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine. Areas of research include bovine tuberculosis; non-regulatory cattle health issues and other animal health and welfare issues. The Biennial Report 2016/2017 can be downloaded from the CVERA website.
The sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic tests for bTB
Detailed information are available on the sensitivity and specificity of both ante- and post-mortem diagnostic tests for bTB in the UK and Ireland. This study which appears in Preventive Veterinary Medicine was based on a systematic literature review and associated meta-analysis. It was led by colleagues in AHVLA in Weybridge, with input from a range of partners in both countries, including CVERA. Of note, the median sensitivity for the SICTT and IFN-γ tests were estimated at 0.50 (95% credible interval: 0.26, 0.78) and 0.67 (0.49, 0.82), and the median specificity of these tests was 1.00 (0.99, 1.00) and 0.98 (0.96, 0.99). The three papers are available (opens in a new window)PVM 153, 94-107, (opens in a new window)PVM 153, 108-116 and (opens in a new window)PVM 153, 117-126.
Abattoir surveillance for bTB
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a series of opinions to assess the impact of changing from the current meat inspection procedures (CMI) to visual-only inspection (VOI) procedures. In a recent Frontiers of Veterinary Science paper, we consider the impact of such changes on herd-level detection sensitivity in Ireland. The results show that if VOI were introduced without alternative surveillance means to compensate for the decrease in abattoir inspection sensitivity, such changes might jeopardise bTB surveillance, control and eradication programmes in cattle herds of non-OTF countries, including Ireland. The paper is available from (opens in a new window)FVS.
CVERA contribution to the work of EFSA
Simon More is shortly to complete his 9-year term with EFSA's Animal Health and Welfare Panel, including the last 6 years as AHAW Panel chair. He has contributed to many scientific opinions during this period, with perhaps the most notable relating to African Swine Fever, multiple stressors affecting honey bees, meat inspection, animal health law and Q fever. During 2018-21, he will continue as a member of EFSA’s Scientific Committee, which considers scientific issues that span all disciplines across EFSA’s areas of responsibility. More information on EFSA’s Scientific Committee and Panels can be found at (opens in a new window)here.
Trends and predictors of large tuberculosis episodes in cattle herds in Ireland
Although there has been a general trend towards less severe bovine tuberculosis (bTB) episodes in Ireland, large bTB episodes still occur (5% of episodes in 2015 involved over 15 reactors). In a recent study conducted by CVERA, in collaboration with DAFM, we looked at predictors that can distinguish between small (less severe) and large (more severe) bTB episodes. In this study we also sought to describe the national trends over time in the severity of bTB episodes in Ireland. The paper can be found (opens in a new window)here.
Decision support beyond total savings - Eligibility and potential savings for individual participants from changes in the national surveillance strategy for bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) in Ireland
In April, we published a paper in Preventive Veterinary Medicine which evaluated how a suggested change from tissue-tag testing to blood sampling would affect individual herd owners in the BVD eradication programme. This work was used by the BVD Implementation Group to shape current policy. The paper is available from (opens in a new window)PVM 155, 38-44.
The history of in vivo tuberculin testing in bovines: tuberculosis a “One Health” issue
A paper titled “The history of in vivo tuberculin testing in bovines: tuberculosis a “One Health” issue” was recently published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science by Good et al. The paper focuses on the development of tuberculin testing in bovines; outlines the origins of tuberculosis (bTB) and puts bTB in a social context. It also discusses the various impediments to the eradication of tuberculosis in bovines as well as discussing tuberculosis in a "One Health" context. The paper is available at (opens in a new window)FVS 4, 247.
Professor Eamonn Gormley has been appointed Chairman of the 7th International Conference on Mycobacterium bovis
Congratulations to Professor Eamonn Gormley who has been appointed Chairman of the 7th International Conference on Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis 2020 for short). Further details on the compilation of the Scientific Committee will be confirmed later this year. The conference will take place in Galway. For more information please visit (opens in a new window)http://www.mbovis2022.com/ or follow us on Twitter @mbovis2022
Congratulations to Dr. Inma Aznar on her PhD and new appointment with EFSA
Congratulations to Dr. Inma Aznar who successfully defended her PhD in Wageningen University earlier this year. Her thesis “Infection dynamics and effective control strategies of tuberculosis in badgers and cattle in Ireland” resulted in several high impact papers on various aspects of badger vaccination in Ireland. We wish Inma all the best as she begins her new job with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in Parma, Italy.
February 2018
Quantify Mycobacterium bovis transmission in a badger vaccine field trial
In the UK and Ireland, Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination of badgers has been suggested as one of a number of strategies to control or even eradicate Mycobacterium bovis infection in badgers. A (opens in a new window)recent paper by Aznar and colleagues from Wageningen University examines the results of the badger vaccination field trial conducted in County Kilkenny. The paper introduces a novel trial design and analytical methods allowing for the effects of vaccination on protection against infection and, more importantly, on transmission to be estimated. The results of this study reveal that, with vaccination coverage in badgers exceeding 30%, eradication of M. bovis in badgers in Ireland is feasible, provided that the current bovine control measures also remain in place.
Wildlife Administration Unit and badger vaccination
DAFM's Wildlife Administration Unit (WAU) has had responsibility for the implementation of the Department's wildlife strategy for bovine tuberculosis since it's foundation in 2002. The strategy is implemented under licence from, and in co-operation with, National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS). CVERA provides ongoing support to the WAU, including the approval or rejection of badger capture requests under specific circumstances as agreed with NPWS in accordance with the terms of the 1976 Wildlife Act (as amended). CVERA also generates regular WAU activity and “area under treatment” reports, provides ongoing support to field staff working in problem areas and generates resources for various projects including vaccination trials, bait study trials and the non-inferiority trial. CVERA will continue to provide support to the WAU as it progresses to the badger vaccination phase of the TB eradication programme, as (opens in a new window)announced by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed, TD in January, 2018.
On-farm antimicrobial usage
There is increasing scrutiny of on-farm antimicrobial usage as part of discussions - internationally, within the EU and nationally - on antimicrobial resistance. In several EU member states, farm-level data are now available to allow objective assessment and benchmarking. In a (opens in a new window)recent publication, intramammary antimicrobial usage in Ireland between 2003 and 2015 has been quantified, based on national sales data. In recent years, there has been a reducing use of in-lactation therapy, whereas the national coverage of dry cow therapy is approaching 100%. Further, there is a small but increasing percentage of tubes, both for in-lactation and dry cow use, containing antimicrobials that are critically important for human health. The results highlights positive national progress, but also areas for detailed review.
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
The investigation of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) cases can be particularly difficult, in large part due to the time lag between exposure of the BSE agent and the onset of clinical signs. Drawing on the experience gained in Ireland over many years, a (opens in a new window)recent paper describes an epidemiological framework and BSE investigation questionnaire to aid in the investigation of suspect BSE cases, and the application of this tool during the investigation of a suspect BSE case in Ireland in 2015.
Hypothetical route of the introduction of Schmallenberg virus into Ireland
Schmallenberg virus (SBV) is a viral pathogen of ruminants that first emerged in Europe in 2011. In Ireland, the first confirmed case of SBV was identified in October 2012. In conjunction with DAFM’s Central Veterinary Laboratories, CVERA used SBV serology on archived bovine sera combined with Atmospheric Dispersion Modelling to investigate the potential introduction of SBV into Ireland through a Culicoides (biting midge) wind incursion event in the summer of 2012. The findings are presented in the (opens in a new window)Veterinary Record.
RISKSURV workshop
CVERA and the SAT division in DAFM recently ran a workshop on the design of risk surveillance systems using the RISKSURV tool. A key message from the workshop was the need to clarify the primary purpose of surveillance, either early detection, demonstrating freedom from disease, measuring prevalence or case finding. The first two objects are relevant to exotic diseases such as bluetongue and foot and mouth disease, and the latter to surveillance of endemic diseases such as Johne's disease and bovine tuberculosis. Workshop participants explored the use of the RISKSURV design tool to facilitate a structured approach to the design of disease surveillance programmes. More details of the RISKSURV tool can be found (opens in a new window)here.
BVD mapping
CVERA produce monthly maps for Animal Health Ireland (AHI) in support of their national Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) eradication program. These (opens in a new window)maps include the monthly cumulative distribution of persistently infected (PI) births per year and the number of positive animals detected and still alive since the program commenced. Plans are underway for AHI, Animal Health & Welfare Northern Ireland and CVERA to expand this mapping series to cover the island of Ireland in the near future.
African Swine Fever
Following its initial incursion into the EU in early 2014, African Swine Fever (ASF) is now present in a number of EU member states. In support of the European Commission and individual member states, the Animal Health and Welfare Panel within the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has now produced 8 scientific opinions and reports on a range of issues relevant to ASF and its control. Its most recent (opens in a new window)scientific report, published on 8 November 2017, covers the 12 month period to September 2017. It is clear that sharing best practice, including early detection and rigorous emergency measures, is critical to stopping spread. Further, despite concerted efforts to stop ASF spread among wild boar, humans have played a critical role in spreading the disease. Simon More is chair of the AHAW Panel and a member of the current ASF working group.
BVD eradication
CVERA, Animal Health Ireland, and UFZ in Leipzig collaborated to evaluate the Irish BVD eradication programme and inform its future development. In particular, an epidemiological modelling approach was used to predict the likely time-to-eradication of BVD from Ireland and to evaluate the pros and cons of switching to a serological, as opposed to tissue-tag testing, approach. The study highlighted the adverse impact of PI retention on time-to-eradication. The study was recently published in (opens in a new window)Preventive Veterinary Medicine.
Influenza D Virus in Cattle, Ireland
CVERA provided mapping support for DAFM’s Laboratory Services in their letter entitled ‘Influenza D Virus in Cattle, Ireland’ recently published in (opens in a new window)Emerging Infectious Diseases. The study confirms the emergence of influenza D virus in Ireland.
M. bovis 2020
Planning is ongoing for the Seventh International Conference on Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis 2020 for short). M. bovis 2020 will take place in Galway from 8-11 June 2020, bringing together scientists, policy makers, veterinarians and industry stakeholders from around the world with the aim of identifying constraints and providing practical solutions for the control and eradication of M. bovis. The Scientific Committee will be formed over the coming months. For more information please visit (opens in a new window)www.mbovis2022.com or follow us on Twitter @mbovis2022