Abstract
Peste des petits ruminants, caused by the peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV), is a highly contagious and economically important transboundary viral disease of domestic and wild small ruminants and a major hindrance to small-ruminant production in Nigeria. The seroprevalence and distribution of PPRV antibodies in small ruminants in rural households, farms, live animal markets and slaughter slabs across the six different agro-ecological zones of Nigeria were determined. A total of 4548 serum samples from 3489 goats and 1059 sheep were collected in 12 states. A PPRV competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to test the samples and the data analysed with R statistical software version 3.0.1. The study animals included all ages and both sexes. The overall prevalence estimate of sera positive for PPRV antibodies was 23.16% (n = 1018 positive samples per 4548 total samples, 95% confidence interval: 21.79% – 24.57%). There were significant differences in the seroprevalence between the states (p = 0.001). Taraba State had the highest seroprevalence of 29.51%, whilst the lowest seroprevalence of 14.52% was observed in Cross River State. There were no significant differences in the PPRV seroprevalence between male and female animals (p = 0.571), age (p = 0.323) and between species (p = 0.639). These data indicate the current seroprevalence to PPRV in the small-ruminant population in Nigeria.
Highlights
Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a highly contagious and economically important transboundary viral disease of domestic and wild small ruminants (Balamurugan et al 2010)
The disease is caused by the peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV), which is classified in the genus Morbillivirus within the family Paramyxoviridae (King et al 2012)
No animal was known to have been vaccinated against PPRV before or at the time of sampling
Summary
Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a highly contagious and economically important transboundary viral disease of domestic and wild small ruminants (Balamurugan et al 2010). Outbreaks of PPR occur regularly in small ruminants throughout Nigeria and are characterised by pyrexia, depression, anorexia, diarrhoea, respiratory distress, mucopurulent oculo-nasal discharge with matting of the eyelids, necrotic oral lesions that produce a foetid smell and sometimes abortion in pregnant animals. The disease is caused by the peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV), which is classified in the genus Morbillivirus within the family Paramyxoviridae (King et al 2012). Outbreaks have continued to occur in the country during the last 40 years, despite the introduction of the tissue culture rinderpest vaccine against PPRV in the 1980s and the use of the homologous PPRV vaccine (Diallo 2003; Diallo et al 1989) since 1998.
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