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Published Date: 2012-03-16 20:02:52
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Foot & mouth disease - Egypt (07): st SAT2, conf.
Archive Number: 20120316.1072712

FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE - EGYPT (07): SEROTYPE SAT2, CONFIRMED
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Date: Fri 16 Mar 2012
Source: Flutrackers [machine trans. summarized, edited]
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showpost.php?p=446932&postcount=1
http://www1.youm7.com/News.asp?NewsID=627953&SecID=12

According to information provided to "Youm 7" [the Egyptian daily "Seventh Day"], the World Reference Laboratory for Foot and mouth disease [WRLFMD] at Pirbright [UK] has officially confirmed that the outbreak in Egypt is caused by the new strain SAT2 which has swept through 24 provinces recently, causing the death of more than 3000 cattle.

An outbreak of SAT2 in Libya caused 10.87 percent mortality there. It was stated that shipments of sheep were smuggled into Egypt across the border with Libya. The Egyptian authorities are trying to obtain appropriate vaccines abroad and claim that tighter measures are being undertaken to prevent the spread of the disease prior to the arrival of vaccines. Steps are also [being] undertaken to prepare the production of the relevant vaccines at the Ministry's Serum and Vaccine Laboratory [Abbassiyah].

According to the last report received by Engineer Mohammad Reza Ismail, Minister of Agriculture, the highest numbers of infections and deaths due to the new SAT2 strain have been encountered in the Gharbiyah governorate, followed by the Dakahlia governorate.

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[We are informed by reliable sources that the news above about the confirmation of FMDV SAT2 in Egypt by the WRLFMD is correct. This information, and particularly the due genotyping results, are expected to be included in Egypt's page of the WRLFMD web-site
http://www.wrlfmd.org/fmd_genotyping/africa/egy.htm.

It will not be surprising if Libya's and Egypt's SAT2 strains are found to be closely related, and it may be assumed that they belong to strains circulating in adjacent parts of Africa, particularly Sudan which borders both countries to their south. In this respect, subscribers may refer to the 2010 paper "Molecular Characterization of FMD Viruses Collected from Sudan" (Ref. 1), from which the following section "Phylogenetic analysis of serotype SAT2 viruses," is hereby presented (edited, references omitted):

"FMD SAT2 viruses have been previously divided into 14 topotypes. The phylogenetic analysis for Sudanese SAT2 viruses is shown in Fig. 5. The 2 isolates collected during 2008 (SAT2/SUD/1/2008 and SAT2/SUD/2/2008) were closely related to each other and shared a recent common ancestral history with a SAT2 virus (SAT2/ETH/2/2007) recovered from an FMD outbreak in Ethiopia in 2007 (respective nucleotide identities of 98.3 and 98.5 percent). These viruses were grouped together with older viruses collected during 1977 from Sudan in topotype XIII of SAT2. A further recent SAT2 virus from Sudan (SAT2/SUD/1/2007) was grouped in SAT2 topotype VII. Viruses from this lineage have also been identified from several other countries in sub-Saharan Africa [Cameroon, Eritrea, Nigeria, Niger] and beyond (Saudi Arabia)."

According to the most recent (Dec 2011) available recommendations from WRLFMD on FMD SAT2 potential vaccine strains to be included in FMDV antigen banks, the highest priority was attributed to SAT2 Saudi Arabia (or equivalent). It will be essential, for all Middle Eastern countries as well as for adjacent regions, to obtain WRL's updated recommendations regarding vaccination against the SAT2 strain currently circulating in Libya and Egypt. Publication of the genotyping results will be helpful.

Several illustrated articles, addressing the epizootic, can be found in the Egyptian press. "Al Wafd" of 15 Mar 2012 dedicated its item 178469 to the issue, accompanied by a picture depicting "Suez livestock farmers throwing dead cattle in front of the provincial offices". Item 178435 of the same day, with 4 pictures, said that 4512 cattle died in Gharbiya governorate alone.

On 7 Mar 2012 "Egypt Independent" reported the death of "more than 7000 cattle" in Tanta. It included a picture of dead calves "thrown in front of headquarters of Gharbiya governorate, during villagers' protest;" see at http://www.egyptindependent.com/node/700601.

Throwing FMD-infected animals in front of government buildings demonstrates a deplorable level of biosecurity. According to the above newswire, the virus has spread practically to the entire territory of Egypt [24/27 governorates]; (the OIE notification mentioned only 8 governorates).

Reference 1:
Habiela M., Ferris N.P., Hutchings G.H., Wadsworth J., Reid S.M., Madi M., Ebert K., Sumption K.J., Knowles N.J., King D.P., Paton D.J. (2010). Molecular characterization of foot-and-mouth disease viruses collected from Sudan. Transbound Emerg Dis 57(5):305-314.
- Mod.AS]

[Photo of infected cow, Egypt
http://www.egyptindependent.com//sites/default/files/imagecache/highslide_zoom/photo/2012/03/10/228/001_copy.jpg - Mod.JW]]

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