Gert van der Hoek
In Memoriam - Editor, Senior Moderator
BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese scientists have found a natural mutation in the African swine fever virus they say could be less deadly than the strain that ravaged the world’s largest pig herd in 2018 and 2019.
The findings, published in the February edition of the Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science this week, come amid intense debate in the industry over the evolution of the disease for which there is no approved vaccine.
Reuters reported last month that at least two new strains of African swine fever had been found on Chinese pig farms, which appeared to be man-made.
The strains are causing a chronic form of African swine fever that is impacting production on sow farms, industry insiders have said.
The researchers at the Military Veterinary Institute in Changchun said there appeared to be a growing trend of lower mortality from African swine fever with more clinical symptoms that are not easy to detect and difficult to control.
Such characteristics have also been attributed to strains believed to have been made for use in illicit vaccines.
The findings, published in the February edition of the Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science this week, come amid intense debate in the industry over the evolution of the disease for which there is no approved vaccine.
Reuters reported last month that at least two new strains of African swine fever had been found on Chinese pig farms, which appeared to be man-made.
The strains are causing a chronic form of African swine fever that is impacting production on sow farms, industry insiders have said.
The researchers at the Military Veterinary Institute in Changchun said there appeared to be a growing trend of lower mortality from African swine fever with more clinical symptoms that are not easy to detect and difficult to control.
Such characteristics have also been attributed to strains believed to have been made for use in illicit vaccines.
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