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The COST Action ASF-STOP brought together an extensive network of scientists of remarkable excellence on African swine fever (ASF) vaccinology, virology, immunology, diagnostics and pathology. The network also includes global leaders in wild boar ecology and management, renowned epidemiologists specialised in ASF and disease control and scientists with vast expertise in the pig sector in Europe, biosecurity, cleaning and disinfection in pig holdings. This book collects updated knowledge in these fields, with a focus on the European situation. ASFSTOP coordinated and integrated research on ASF. Despite the new knowledge generated on ASF by scientists in Europe and worldwide, many unknowns still remain. For example, many expressed ASF virus (ASFV) genes remain uncharacterised and the information is needed for efficient antiviral drug and vaccine development. Crucial interactions between ASFV and cells like macrophages or dendritic cells are not yet completely understood. Research is needed on the mechanisms of protective immunity and identifying further viral proteins for inclusion in subunit vaccines. An in-depth analysis of the impact of ASF on the structure of the pig farming system in the EU has not yet been conducted, and transmission risks from the wild boar-habitat epidemiological cycle to the domestic pig cycle are still not fully understood. The pig sector is one of the most economically significant farming sectors in the EU and pork is the most consumed meat. The EU is the world's second biggest producer of pork. In both the wild boar-habitat and the domestic pig epidemiological cycle fully implemented biosecurity can hinder or eliminate virus transmission. National legislation and EU regulations set out clear regulations for controlling ASF. However, across Europe, wild boar populations are growing in size and range and the control of ASF continues to be a major challenge. The great socio-economic impact of ASF calls for further collaborative efforts to tackle this disease.

Trabajo presentado a la Final Conference of the COST Action ASF-STOP 2020, celebrada en Brescia del 29 al 30 de enero de 2020., COST Action CA15116 (ASF-STOP), supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology).

Resumen del trabajo presentado al 11th EPIZONE Annual Meeting: "Crossing barriers", celebrado en Paris (Francia) del 19 al 21 de septiembre de 2017., Combating and understanding African Swine Fever in Europe (ASF-STOP) is an interdisciplinary research network financed by the COST EU programme, which has as its main aim to stop African swine fever (ASF) from spreading further in Europe and protecting the European pig industry by combating ASF through a comprehensive, multi- and interdisciplinary approach. ASF-STOP started on 1st May 2016 and will end on 30th April 2020. ASF-STOP enables researchers to interact and collaborate on the multiple aspects related to ASF. The decision-taking body is the Management Committee (MC), formed by 1 or 2 representatives from each of the 29 participating COST countries. Five working groups (WG1: ASF virus, WG2: ASF in wild boar, WG3: ASF in domestic pigs-pig industry, WG4: ASF infection dynamics and control, WG5: integration of knowledge and communication of results), work towards the achievement of the scientific objectives. During its first year, ASF-STOP held: i. Website launch for the dissemination of Action activities (https://www.asf-stop.com). ii. International Launch conference, with eight scientific Sessions and including four invited speakers from USA, Canada, Uganda and Russia, in Pulawy, Poland. iii. Workshop “Advances in Vaccinology”, Pulawy, Poland. iv. Workshop ’Researchers link European industrial partners’, Pulawy, Poland. v. Working group meetings in: Pulawy, Poland (all WGs), Pirbright (England; WG1), Brescia (Italy; WG3), and Lisbon (Portugal; WG2-4). Five Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM) were conducted by young investigators and were hosted by expert centres/laboratories in various European countries. These were: “The role of wild boars in the dynamic of ASF spread among domestic swine in Sweden” (host: SVA, Sweden), “Study of Extracellular vesicles in the ASFV vector-host interface” (host: The Pirbright Institute, UK), “Further validation of alternative sampling methods for the passive swine fever surveillance in wild boar under field conditions” (host: Univ. of Life Science, Tartu, Estonia), “Application of fast molecular techniques for ASF virus detection” (host: Nat. Vet. Research Inst. Pulawy, Poland) and “Short training program on tools to census and monitor wild boar population status” (host: Spanish Wildlife Research Institute IREC, Spain). Dissemination activities included participation with a ASF-STOP Session at the Global ASF Research Alliance (GARA) Scientific Workshop in Ploufragan (France) in September 2016 and dissemination at the 12th European Wildlife Disease Association (EWDA) conference in Berlin (Germany) in August 2016. More information is presented in the Action’s website. During its first year, ASF-STOP fulfilled the COST Policy aims, with the following representation of participating countries: Inclusiveness Target Countries (ITCs): 46%, Early Career Investigators (ECIs): 19%, and Gender balance: 31% females in MC, 57% females in leadership roles. The presentation will summarise the main achievements towards the scientific, training and strategic objectives obtained during the first year of ASF-STOP., This abstract is based upon work from COST Action CA15116, supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology.

Source at http://dx.doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2017.4667 In April and May of 2016, Norway confirmed two cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a wild reindeer and a wild moose, respectively. In the light of this emerging issue, the European Commission requested EFSA to recommend surveillance activities and, if necessary, additional animal health risk-based measures to prevent the introduction of the disease and the spread into/within the EU, specifically Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Sweden, and considering seven wild, semidomesticated and farmed cervid species (Eurasian tundra reindeer, Finnish (Eurasian) forest reindeer, moose, roe deer, white-tailed deer, red deer and fallow deer). It was also asked to assess any new evidence on possible public health risks related to CWD. A 3-year surveillance system is proposed, differing for farmed and wild or semidomesticated cervids, with a two-stage sampling programme at the farm/geographically based population unit level (random sampling) and individual level (convenience sampling targeting high-risk animals). The current derogations of Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2016/1918 present a risk of introduction of CWD into the EU. Measures to prevent the spread of CWD within the EU are dependent upon the assumption that the disease is already present; this is currently unknown. The measures listed are intended to contain (limit the geographic extent of a focus) and/or to control (actively stabilise/reduce infection rates in an affected herd or population) the disease where it occurs. With regard to the zoonotic potential, the human species barrier for CWD prions does not appear to be absolute. These prions are present in the skeletal muscle and other edible tissues, so humans may consume infected material in enzootic areas. Epidemiological investigations carried out to date make no association between the occurrence of sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease in humans and exposure to CWD prions.

Presentado a la 12th Conference of the European Wildlife Disease Association (EWDA), celebrada en Berlin (Alemania) del 26 al 31 de agosto de 2016.

Resumen del trabajo presentado a la 65th Annual International Conference of the Wildlife Disease Association (WDA), celebrada en Ithaca, New York (USA) del 31 de julio al 5 de agosto de 2016., African swine fever (ASF) is a viral hemorrhagic disease of suids. Its potential impact on the pig industry, international trade, game sector and rural livelihoods could be devastating for the European Union (EU), with a total pig population of 149 million and an annual export of over 2.17 billion Euro. There is particular concern about the epidemiological role of European wild boar (Sus scrofa) population, which has grown exponentially in recent decades, and now forms a continuous population of 3.5 million across Europe. The objectives of this presentation are: 1. To provide an update on the recent incursion and advance of ASF in Europe; 2. To introduce/present the recently initiated Action in Europe: ASF-STOP. Materials for this study were epidemiological reports (OIE, EU-Animal Disease Notification System) and published data. ASF emerged in continental Europe through an incursion in Georgia in 2007, thereafter spread into Armenia affecting domestic pigs and wild boar, and expanded into Azerbaijan, Russia, Ukraine and Belarus causing large-scale epidemics in domestic pigs. Simultaneous infection of domestic pig and wild boar populations has led to persistence of ASF. The wild boar population provides an easy route for ASF spread. ASF entered the EU in 2014 with the first cases in Lithuania followed by Poland, Latvia and Estonia. The first detection in these four countries was in wild boar found dead. There are no vaccines available and ASF continues to advance. ASF-STOP is a networking Action financed by the EU that brings together scientists from 27 European countries with the main aim of understanding and combating ASF. The Action has a strong component of wild boar work, including biology, management, epidemiology and ASF-pathobiology. ASF is an emerging infection that threatens the pig industry. The growing wild boar population in Europe poses a major challenge for the control of ASF.