Table 1. Pathogens investigated as possible cause of abortion in ruminants in the different institutes and/or countries.
| Reporting partner | ANSES | APHA | FLI | NEIKER | Royal GD | Sciensano | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scope | France 1 | UK | Germany 2 | Spain 3 | The
Netherlands |
Belgium 5 | |
| Pathogens | Coxiella burnetii | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Anaplasma sp. | ✓ | (✓) | NR | (✓) | NR | (✓) | |
| Brucella sp. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | NR 4 | ✓ | |
| Campylobacter sp. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | (✓) | ✓ | ✓ | |
|
Campylobacter fetus subsp.
venerealis |
✓ | (✓) | ✓ | (✓) | NR 4 | NR | |
| Chlamydia abortus | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Leptospira sp. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | (✓) | |
| Mycoplasma sp. | NR | (✓) | (✓) | (✓) | ✓ | NR | |
| Tritrichomonas foetus | NR | (✓) | (✓) | (✓) | NR | NR | |
| Ureaplasma sp. | NR | (✓) | NR | (✓) | NR | (✓) | |
|
Other bacteria (e.g.,
Salmonella sp.,
Listeria sp., Yersinia sp., Trueperella pyogenes) |
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Neospora caninum | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Toxoplasma gondii | ✓ | ✓ | (✓) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Bluetongue virus | (✓) | (✓) | (✓) | NR | (✓) | (✓) | |
| Bovine herpesvirus | NR | (✓) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | (✓) | |
|
Pestivirus (Border disease virus-BD;
Bovine viral diarrhoea virus-BVD) |
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Schmallenberg virus | (✓) | (✓) | ✓ | (✓) | (✓) | (✓) | |
| Mycoses (particularly Aspergillus sp.) | ✓ | ✓ | (✓) | (✓) | ✓ | ✓ |
(√) In brackets, pathogens are not included in all cases in the standard abortion protocol; they are only investigated in particular circumstances based on specific clinical signs, epidemiological context, or post-mortem findings, and optionally, when a diagnosis is not achieved with the standard protocol. For example,
Tritrichomonas foetus and
Campylobacter fetus subsp.
venerealis may be investigated in cases of infertility; Bluetongue virus and Schmallenberg virus if the fetus shows typical abnormalities, and the investigation of
Anaplasma,
Mycoplasma and
Ureaplasma may be based on history and/or clinical findings. NR refers to those not routinely investigated, but tests can be performed if needed.
1 The French laboratory network follows the OSCAR (Observatory of Causes of Abortions in Ruminants) protocol, a prototype scheme for differential diagnosis, that is voluntary. Pathogens not included (in brackets or denoted NR) were investigated in particular circumstances, as described above. The OSCAR protocol aims to identify infectious causes of abortion in ruminants (cattle, sheep, and goats) using harmonised diagnostic recommendations at the national scale. The network involves not only laboratories but also the entire chain of involved partners, starting from sampling on farms: the key stakeholders involved included GDS France, the National Animal Health Surveillance Platform (Plateforme ESA), farmers, practicing veterinarians, veterinary diagnostic laboratories, departmental veterinary services, and technical and research institutes. It is important to note that OSCAR's annual report does not provide nationwide surveillance data, as the system is still under development; therefore, the collected data are not representative of the entire French territory.
2 There are no general guidelines for the diagnosis of abortions in Germany. Specific regulations exist for certain pathogens, e.g. Brucella. The panel described here is based on submission recommendations from seven state veterinarian diagnostic laboratories and five private diagnostic laboratories.
3 There are no general guidelines for the diagnosis of abortion in Spain. There are specific laws and regulations for certain pathogens (e.g., Brucella). The panel described here was based on the protocol used at NEIKER (Basque Country, Spain) for the investigation of abortion cases submitted for diagnosis.
4 The Netherlands is free of brucellosis, Campylobacter fetus subsp. venerealis and Tritrichomonas foetus; therefore, these pathogens are not included in the ruminant abortion investigation protocol. Brucellosis has been investigated in cattle by compulsory testing of aborted cattle. For small ruminants, sheep and goats from 1,475 farms are tested annually using the Rose Bengal Test.
5 In Belgium, the 'Abortion Protocol' is implemented for the diagnosis of ruminant abortions via the laboratories of ‘Dierengezondheidszorg Vlaanderen’ ( DGZ) and ‘Association Régionale de Santé et d’Identification Animales’ ( ARSIA). Beyond mandatory tests defined by disease-specific legislation (e.g., for brucellosis and coxiellosis), the basic protocol encompasses a comprehensive panel of other tests aimed at identifying the most common infectious causes of abortion in ruminants. See Table 2e for specific details. The panel of tests may change depending on the epidemiological situation, and the FASFC bears analysis costs. Next, DGZ/ARSIA offers additional tests for abortion diagnosis subject to a fee. The additional tests offered by the two laboratories may differ slightly.