Search

The COST action “Standardising output-based surveillance to control non-regulated diseases of cattle in the European Union (SOUND control),” aims to harmonise the results of surveillance and control programmes (CPs) for selected cattle diseases to facilitate safe trade and improve overall control of cattle infectious diseases. In this paper we aimed to provide an overview on the diversity of control for these diseases in Europe. A selected cattle disease was defined as an infectious disease of cattle with no or limited control at EU level, which is not included in the European Union Animal health law Categories A or B under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2002. A CP was defined as surveillance and/or intervention strategies designed to lower the incidence, prevalence, mortality or prove freedom from a specific disease in a region or country. Passive surveillance, and active surveillance of breeding bulls under Council Directive 88/407/EEC were not considered as CPs. A questionnaire was designed to obtain country-specific information about CPs for each disease. Animal health experts from 33 European countries completed the questionnaire. Overall, there are 23 diseases for which a CP exists in one or more of the countries studied. The diseases for which CPs exist in the highest number of countries are enzootic bovine leukosis, bluetongue, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, bovine viral diarrhoea and anthrax (CPs reported by between 16 and 31 countries). Every participating country has on average, 6 CPs (min–max: 1–13) in place. Most programmes are implemented at a national level (86%) and are applied to both dairy and non-dairy cattle (75%). Approximately one-third of the CPs are voluntary, and the funding structure is divided between government and private resources. Countries that have eradicated diseases like enzootic bovine leukosis, bluetongue, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis and bovine viral diarrhoea have implemented CPs for other diseases to further improve the health status of cattle in their country. The control of the selected cattle diseases is very heterogenous in Europe. Therefore, the standardising of the outputs of these programmes to enable comparison represents a challenge.

The European golden jackal (Canis aureus) occupies a wide geographical range, spanning across northern and eastern Africa, northeastern Europe, and parts of southern Asia. In the past two decades, there has been a notable expansion of jackal populations into lowland areas in the northern regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with individuals migrating from Serbia and northeastern Croatia, thus establishing a stable population. A comprehensive population genetic study conducted by Nikitović et al. (2023) revealed intriguing insights into the genetic makeup of Bosnian jackals. Despite the absence of a discernible spatial pattern, the study revealed moderate genetic variability and the presence of two genetic clusters within the population. Intrigued by these findings, our study aimed to delve deeper into the genetic dynamics, specifically investigating whether sex plays a role in shaping the genetic structure of the jackal population in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our analysis focused on 47 individuals sampled from the northern regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. To determine the sex of the specimens, we employed molecular techniques, amplifying the Amelogenin gene using The Canine GenotypesTM Panel 1.1 kit (Finnzymes, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Finland). We used 16 microsatellite loci to assess genetic structure and variability and employed various software including GenAlEx v6.5 for genetic variability parameters (Na, Ne, He, Ho, HWE), STRUCTURE v.2.3.4 for population structure analysis, Structure Harvester for determining the optimal number of genetic clusters, and Clumpak for visualizing results from STRUCTURE analyses. Our dataset comprised 18 females and 29 males, for which basic genetic parameters appeared similar. However, STRUCTURE analysis revealed the presence of four genetic clusters (K=4) without a clear spatial pattern. Despite this, our findings conclusively demonstrate that sex does not significantly influence the genetic structure of the jackal population in Bosnia and Herzegovina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been estimated that there are over 400 existing breeds of domestic dogs today. Phenotypically, domestic dog is one of the most diverse animal species due to long cohabitation with humans. According to the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), Bosnia and Herzegovina is recognized as the country of origin for two autochthonous dog breeds: Bosnian and Herzegovinian--Croatian Shepherd dog Tornjak and Bosnian Broken-Haired Hound--Barak. Microsatellite diversity of Barak and Tornjak breeds and their genetic differentiation were analyzed. StockMarks® for Canine Genotyping Kit (Applied Biosystems) was used to amplify ten microsatellite loci. Allele frequencies, observed and effective number of alleles and their ratio, observed and expected heterozygosity, number of genotypes, genotypic frequencies, PIC (Polymorphism Information Content), MAF (Major Allele Frequency), and deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were calculated. Genetic differentiation (Fst), AMOVA (analysis of molecular variation), FCA analysis (Factorial Correspondence Analysis), and STRUCTURE analysis were performed to estimate an intergroup genetic variability of the two breeds. Genetic distance according to the Nei model was also estimated. Total genetic differentiation was 0.0469, with the highest value for PEZ8 locus and the lowest for FHC2010 locus. Results of AMOVA showed that 91% of total genetic variation was within individuals, 4% between individuals, and 5% between two breeds. Differences in allele frequencies of observed loci were statistically significant, except for FHC2010 loci. FCA results indicate a clear differentiation between the two breeds. According to the STRUCTURE analysis results, 93.5% of Barak specimens were grouped in Cluster I and 6.5% in Cluster II, while 34.5% of Tornjak specimens belonged to Cluster I and 65.5% to Cluster II. Concerning the observed microsatellite loci, Barak and Tornjak do not have an evident genetic differentiation. However, allelic structure and their frequencies within these two breeds indicate a clear genetic position of diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]