Serological survey on Aujeszky's disease, swine influenza and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infections in Italian pigs.

Abstract

Aujeszky's disease (AD), Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) and Swine influenza (SI) are among the principal agents of respiratory diseases of pigs. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of antibodies to SHV-1, PRRSV and SIV in pigs reared in Sicily. An Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay for the glicoprotein gE of pseudorabies virus, for PRRSV and for SIV was performed. Antibodies against gE of SHV-1 were detected in 171 serum samples (14.6%), whereas PRRSV antibodies occurred at a higher frequency than SHV-1 with 289 (31.1%) samples being positive. The seroprevalence of SIV was found to be 33.3%. This study demonstrated the circulation of ADV, PRRSV and SIV viruses in Sicilian swine population. This is the first report on this topics in Sicily.