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Linking Epidemiology and Laboratory Research on Transboundary Animal Diseases and Zoonoses in EU and China
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Web Meeting on Joint Actions in Laboratory and Epidemiology Work in the EU and China

In order to prioritize the emerging animal health, food safety and food security issues in the EU and in China, two literature reviews of published information were carried out by the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in the EU and by the China Animal Disease Control Center (CADC) in China. These findings were then discussed at separate meetings involving key local stakeholders and experts. Findings of the literature reviews and discussions were then presented and discussed at the LinkTADs Workshop in Shanghai, on 14-16 April 2014.

A survey was also carried out by RVC among animal health researchers to map the available resources and infrastructure in high priority areas, to identify specific gaps and synergies between the EU and China. While researchers in the EU mentioned limited access to funding as a potential barrier to research, those in China felt that lack of access to databases of animal health information may be a major constraint, along with a lack of personnel trained in epidemiological methods.

The key findings were:

  • Both the EU and China consider influenza, African swine fever (ASF), rabies and brucellosis to be high priority issues, and antimicrobial resistance a significant concern.
  • Tuberculosis (TB), bluetongue (BT) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) are of high importance in the EU. TB and FMD are also priorities for China, but not as much as other diseases.
  • Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), Newcastle disease (ND), classical swine fever (CSF), porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) and pseudorabies are of high importance in China, but are lower priorities in the EU.
  • Although not emphasized in the literature review, peste des petits ruminants (PPR), Japanese encephalitis (JE) and African swine fever (ASF) are all emerging issues of increasing concern for China.
  • In the EU, a large proportion of animal health research focuses on cattle, whereas the focus in China concerns pigs and poultry. Almost three quarters of the animal health research in China takes place in the laboratory, while in the EU there is a more even split between laboratory-based and field-based epidemiology research.
  • These findings indicate common priorities as well as potential gaps and opportunities for collaboration which will be explored further as part of ongoing LinkTADs activities.