SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR ANIMAL HEALTH
A very important issue related to brucellosis in terrestrial wildlife is the distinction between a spillover of infection from livestock into wildlife, compared with a sustainable infection in wildlife.
In the latter case, the concern of the livestock industry is to prevent the reintroduction of the infection in livestock, particularly in regions or states that are ‘officially brucellosis-free’ because of the costs linked to pre-movement testing. The development of the game farming industry has contributed to the re-emergence of brucellosis as an international concern for both livestock and wildlife, by increasing the density ofpotentially infected game species and the introduction of artificial feeding1-8).I n Europe, given the progress of the national bovine brucellosis eradication programmes, it is unlikely that B. abortus will establish itself in free-ranging wild ungulates. The same can probably be said for B. melitensis, although foci of infection in small ruminants remain important in some southern European states and in the Balkans.
Although brucellosis has been eradicated in the domestic pig population for decades in Europe, B. suis biovar 2 infection in wild boar (which has established itself as a sustainable infection in almost all European wild boar populations) could become of major concern for outdoor reared pigs.
Translocation of infected hares in the absence of brucellosis regulations may contribute to its dissemination in Europe. Currently, there are many taxonomical issues related to marine mammal Brucella isolates that may lead to the description of new species and/or biovars in the near future. Transmission routes in the marine environment are unknown, and the role of fish as reservoirs has to date not been investigated.
The recent discovery of B. microti and B. inopinata poses new challenges on our understanding of brucellosis at the wildlife/livestock/human interface.
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