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African swine fever is one of the most serious threats to the world pig industry due to high infectivity and mortality rates among pigs. To date, no effective means of active prevention of the infection have been developed. The only effective method of control is passive monitoring of the spread of the pathogen among the population of domestic and wild pigs, detection of infected animals and their depopulation. The study analyzes the spread of African swine fever in Ukraine from 2012 to 2024 and compares it with the countries that share a common border – Poland, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova. In Ukraine, the first outbreaks were recorded in 2012 in Zaporizhzhia region among domestic pigs. In total, 619 outbreaks were detected during the study period: 482 among domestic pigs and 137 among wild pigs. The largest number of outbreaks was recorded in Odesa (64), Poltava (54), Mykolaiv (52) and Kyiv (46) regions. In Eastern European countries, African swine fever was detected later: in Poland – since 2014 (1304 among domestic and 17871 among wild pigs), Romania – since 2017 (6729 and 3649, respectively), Hungary and Slovakia – since 2018 (0 and 7875; 72 and 3645). In Moldova, the first outbreak was in 2020 (39 among domestic and 45 among wild pigs). The highest total number of outbreaks was recorded in Poland (19175), mainly among wild boars (93.2%). In Hungary, all detected cases involved wild animals. The analysis revealed a statistically significant difference in the number of African swine fever outbreaks between the analyzed countries. There is also a difference in the number of outbreaks within the analyzed time period. If we analyze the number of cases since 2018, there is no statistically significant difference. Prevention and control of African swine fever are complicated by the circulation of the pathogen among wild boars, non-compliance with biosecurity measures by owners of small pig farms and the movement of infected animals. Comprehensive monitoring with early detection of outbreaks and timely destruction of infected animals plays a key role.

Zoonotic leptospirosis is an infectious disease caused by pathogenic Leptospira bacteria that can be transmitted from animals to humans. Animals, especially wild and domestic mammals, are reservoir hosts that carry and excrete the bacteria in their urine. A retrospective analysis of the incidence of leptospirosis in animals and humans in Ukraine from 2003 to 2022 was conducted based on reports from regional state laboratories of veterinary medicine and the Center for Public Health. GIS mapping was used to analyze and visualize the data. The incidence and prevalence of leptospirosis among different animal species, including farm, domestic and wild animals, were analyzed. These studies included a retrospective analysis of blood serum samples from different animal species for leptospirosis and analysis of the results to determine the level of seropositivity. The study analyzed a total of 6,543,934 samples, with an overall seropositivity rate of 3.3%. Among cattle, 4.1% of the samples were positive. For pigs, 2.1% were positive. Horses had a seropositivity rate of 7.9%, while dogs and cats had seropositivity rates of 17.5% and 13.1% respectively. Wild boars showed a positivity rate of 2.2%. The number of seropositive animals of different species in Ukraine showed different dynamics from 2003 to 2022. The highest number of positive cases was found among cattle, pigs and horses. However, the number of positive cases decreased significantly after 2015, which coincides with a significant reduction in the number of farm animals. Trends of increasing seropositivity among dogs and cats in the period 2007–2015 indicate that these species are also active carriers of Leptospira, as are the leading agricultural species. Wildlife species with stable seropositivity serve as both sources and reservoirs of Leptospira. Wild pigs are becoming the main bacterial carriers in all regions of Ukraine. There is a marked disproportion between the number of positive cases among farm animals and wildlife, indicating that seropositivity in these populations exists largely autonomously. A total of 7,937 people were infected in Ukraine between 2003 and 2022. Certain regions, such as Lviv, Kherson, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, and Vinnytsia, account for a larger share of the total number of cases, ranging from 4.8% to 7.3%. The incidence of human leptospirosis has fluctuated over the years, peaking at 473 cases in 2014, followed by a decline: 301 cases in 2015, 323 cases in 2016 and 330 cases in 2017, and in subsequent years the number of cases remained relatively stable, ranging from 142 to 295 cases per year. The study emphasizes the need to improve preventive measures and raise public awareness of the disease, especially in rural areas. It is important to adopt a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach involving collaboration between veterinary medicine, public health and environmental authorities to better understand and address the complexities of leptospirosis transmission and reduce its impact on animal and human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The data present the prevalence of leptospirosis in cattle on the territory of Ukraine over the last eight years (2005-2012) and the dynamics of changes of the etiological structure of the agent. Territorial diffusion of leptospirosis outbreak has also been studied. The outbreaks’ density map was completed based on these data, depending on the number of cases in cattle. All areas of the country were divided into risk of infection four zones: low, medium, high and extra high risk.

Leptospirosis is a widespread infection among pigs throughout the world. In most cases in Ukraine, only the microscopic agglutination test (MAT) is used for the diagnosis of leptospirosis in animals. In general, during the period of 2001-2019, 2 381 163 samples of blood sera from swine were tested in our country and 85 338 positive reactions were received, which is 3.58% [binomial confidence intervals (BCI), 3.56-3.61%]. It was established that the serovars copenhageni  - 33.91% (BCI, 33.59-34.23%), bratislava - 14.14% (BCI, 13.90-14.37%), pomona - 8.58% (BCI, 8.39-8.77%), and tarassovi - 7.12% (BCI, 6.95-7.30%) play a leading role in the aetiological structure of swine leptospirosis. A large number of positive reactions to several serovars was observed - 29.78% (BCI, 29.47-30.09%) of the total number of positive cases. In addition, the article presents data according to a retrospective analysis of the eight serovars circulating among pigs in Ukraine. Thus, during the nineteen year period, there was a decrease in the number of positive reactions to  bratislava , pomona , and tarassovi and an increase in the number of positive reactions to  copenhageni , polonica , and kabura . Mapping Ukraine's territory for leptospirosis among pigs was carried out. This allows one to identify zones with a risk of leptospirosis infections among swine. The maps show that the highest incidence rates were identified in the eastern and central parts of Ukraine., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright: © 2022 Ukhovskyi et al.)

The statistics of rabies cases in Volyn, Lviv, and Zakarpattia oblasts of Ukraine from 2012 to 2016 were analyzed to establish spatial-temporal distribution of rabies endemic outbreaks and to identify causes of widespread infections among wild and domestic animals. The occurrence of rabies outbreaks in wild and domestic animals in Ukraine was also assessed to determine the effectiveness of oral rabies vaccination (ORV) efforts. According to our analysis, parenteral vaccination of domestic animals and ORV campaigns in foxes have proved unsuccessful in providing a sustainable, long-term reduction in endemic rabies outbreaks. ORV campaigns in foxes were deemed ineffective based on our studies of the endemic rabies outbreaks in Volyn, Lviv, and Zakarpattia oblasts in 2012-2016. The current rabies prevention system (parenteral vaccination) failed to offer protection to domestic animals based on our review of the occurrence of endemic rabies outbreaks in dogs and cats. ORV campaign shortcomings and their causes must be identified in order to provide maximum rabies vaccine coverage for dogs and cats. Altogether, the results presented here provide information that can assist public health agencies to devise more effective disease control plans to curtail the spread of rabies in domestic animals and wildlife in Ukraine.

The article presents data on serological studies of 573 sera samples of cattle that were collected from the farms affected by leptospirosis in different regions of Ukraine in the period of 2014-2015. Samples were investigated by the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), which was conducted within eight serological groups of Leptospira and nine serovars: Sejroe (serovars polonica and hardjo ), Hebdomadis (serovar kabura ), Tarassovi (serovar tarassovi ), Pomona (serovar pomona ), Grippotyphosa (serovar grippotyphosa ), Canicola (serovar canicola ), Icterohaemorrhagiae (serovar copenhageni ), and Australis (serovar bratislava ). The circulation of L. interrogans serovar hardjo among cattle has been observed in all 11 regions of Ukraine investigated within 25.8-60.0% of the leptospirosis-positive serum samples in these regions. Antibodies in the cattle sera against serovar hardjo (serogroup Sejroe ) were detected in 139 of the 370 cows reacting positively in MAT. Overall, they were detected in 24.3% animals out of the total of 573 cows investigated. These are the preliminary results, however, in our opinion, they should allow to include the serovar hardjo in a standard panel of strains for MAT in Ukraine., The article presents data on serological studies of 573 sera samples of cattle that were collected from the farms affected by leptospirosis in different regions of Ukraine in the period of 2014–2015. Samples were investigated by the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), which was conducted within eight serological groups of Leptospira and nine serovars: Sejroe (serovars polonica and hardjo ), Hebdomadis (serovar kabura ), Tarassovi (serovar tarassovi ), Pomona (serovar pomona ), Grippotyphosa (serovar grippotyphosa ), Canicola (serovar canicola ), Icterohaemorrhagiae (serovar copenhageni ), and Australis (serovar bratislava ). The circulation of L. interrogans serovar hardjo among cattle has been observed in all 11 regions of Ukraine investigated within 25.8–60.0% of the leptospirosis-positive serum samples in these regions. Antibodies in the cattle sera against serovar hardjo (serogroup Sejroe ) were detected in 139 of the 370 cows reacting positively in MAT. Overall, they were detected in 24.3% animals out of the total of 573 cows investigated. These are the preliminary results, however, in our opinion, they should allow to include the serovar hardjo in a standard panel of strains for MAT in Ukraine.