Published Date: 2018-07-28 20:20:11
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Foot & mouth disease - Mongolia (02): multiple species, st O, spread, RFI
Archive Number: 20180728.5933467

FOOT & MOUTH DISEASE - MONGOLIA (02): MULTIPLE SPECIES, SEROTYPE O, SPREAD, REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

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Date: Tue 17 Jul 2018
Source: Xinhua [in Russian, machine trans., summ., edited]
http://russian.people.com.cn/n3/2018/0718/c31520-9482116.html

In order to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease [FMD] in the Mongolian capital, the Ulaanbaatar Municipality ordered the strengthening of preventive measures. This was reported on Tuesday [17 Jul 2018] by the press service of the mayor's office.

At present, 6 outbreaks of FMD affecting cattle have been recorded in the Mongolian aimag Arkhangai. Since early 2018, this acute virus disease was also observed in 12 aimags [provinces] of Mongolia [see comment].

Local authorities and chief veterinarians of some Mongolian provinces have established strict control over the performance of the quarantine-restrictive measures at animal farms, slaughter facilities, and meat-packing plants.

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Date: Fri 29 Jun 2018
Source: Xinhuanet [edited]
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-06/29/c_137290036.htm

Mongolia's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Friday [29 Jun 2018] said that martial law has been declared in central-west Arkhangai province to contain the spread of the deadly foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). As of Friday [29 Jun 2018], there have been outbreaks of the FMD in 6 soums (administrative subdivisions) in the province. The country's Vice Minister of Food, Agriculture, and Light Industry Saule Janimkhan has ordered the relevant officials to do everything they can to stop the spread of the disease.

Last year [2017], Mongolia exported 29 300 tons of meat to countries such as China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Iran, and Qatar. The country aims to raise meat exports tenfold in the coming years, attempting to diversify its heavily mining-dependent economy. But frequent outbreaks of livestock animal diseases such as FMD is impeding meat exports.

Mongolian quarantine officials have had thousands of animals slaughtered in the past winter in the country to contain the spread of FMD.

FMD is a highly infectious and sometimes fatal disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals such as sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs. The main symptoms of sick animals are increased body temperature and blisters and ulcerations in the mucous membranes, hoofs, and mouth.

FMD is not a direct threat to humans, but disruption of trade and measures to cope with it can be expensive.

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[The (continuing) FMD event in Mongolia started in January 2017 on its 2 eastern aimags (provinces), Sukhbaatar and Dornod, bordering China's Inner Mongolia and Russia's Zabaykal region. The epizootic decreased during 2017's summer months and flared up in January 2018, spreading westwards, affecting cattle, sheep, and goat holdings until early March 2018; it was declared by the Mongolian authorities as resolved on [Tue 10 April 2018].

The total number of outbreaks reported during the said 15 months was 66, from the following 7 aimags (in brackets, number of outbreaks): Sukhbaatar (18), Dornod (8), Khenti (15), Dornogovi (11), Dundgovi (11), Govisumber (1), and Umnugovi (2).

No new outbreaks have been reported to the OIE since March 2018; however, according to the information in the 2 media reports above, FMD has continued (or renewed?) its spread westwards, leaping in June [2018] to the aimag Arkhangai, which is separated by the aimags Uvurkhangal, Tuv, and Bulgan from the eastern zone earlier reported as infected. Furthermore, according to item 1 above, "since early 2018, this acute virus disease was observed in 12 aimags [provinces] of Mongolia." In case this information is verified, FMD has been (or still is) circulating in more provinces than the 7 reported to the OIE.

To see the locations of the 2018 outbreaks in Mongolia, which have been reported to the OIE, in the context of the whole country and of neighboring countries, please go to the WAHID map at https://tinyurl.com/y96f8ds4, click to center on the Mongolian cluster, and zoom in until inter-aimag borderlines become visible.

Information on the factual FMD situation in Mongolia, including the names of currently infected aimags, will be appreciated.

Since January 2017, 8 FMDV (serotype O) strains from Mongolia have been genotyped by WRLFMD. The most recent ones were the following:
Aimag / date collected / host species / topotype / lineage
1. Sukhbaatar / 28 Jan 2017 / cattle / ME-SA / PanAsia
2. Dundgovi / 18 Nov 2017 / cattle / ME-SA / Ind-2001

For further details on each of the above 2 strains, including listed 10 most closely related sequences and prototypes sequences, and on additional strains submitted to the Pirbright reference lab, please visit http://www.wrlfmd.org/fmd_genotyping/asia/mog.htm.

The Mongolian O/ME-SA/PanAsia virus was subjected to a vaccine matching strain differentiation (VMSD) test, with the following results: "good matching results with O/TUR/5/2009 but not with O-3039 and Manisa."

In March 2018, Xinhuanet reported that Mongolia planned to start a vaccination campaign in May 2018, applying Russian vaccines (see http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-03/26/c_137066576.htm). Information on the valencies of the said vaccine, in case applied, and/or of other FMD vaccines, in case used in Mongolia, will be helpful. - Mod.AS

HealthMap/ProMED-mail map: Mongolia: http://healthmap.org/promed/p/1]