Abstract

TAURA SYNDROME IN VENEZUELA
( Disease never reported before ).

Emergency report
Translation of information received on 9 March 2005 from Dr Gustavo Benavides Ovallos, Director of the Autonomous Service of Agricultural Health (SASA), Caracas:

Report date: 8 March 2005.

Nature of diagnosis: clinical and laboratory.

Date of initial detection of animal health incident: October 2004.

Outbreaks:
Zulia State - 14; Falcon State - 8; Nueva State - 4. Total number of outbreaks - 26

Description of affected population: shrimps.

Total number of animals in the outbreaks:
Species: cru; susceptible : 2 billion; cases: … deaths: 0.7 billion; destroyed: … slaughtered: …

Diagnosis: mortality was observed in shrimps after they had shown clinical signs: red points in the telson, vacillating swimming, soft carapace in shrimps weighing less than 5 grams.

A. Laboratory where diagnosis was made: Aquaculture Pathology Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, United States of America (OIE Reference Laboratory for Taura syndrome).

B. Diagnostic tests used: RT-PCR(1).

C. Causal agent: Taura syndrome virus.

Epidemiology:
A. Source of agent / origin of infection: unknown.
B. Mode of spread: spread by avian faeces, cannibalism, transport of sick animals.

Control measures:
- movement control inside the country;
- zoning.
(1) RT-PCR: reverse transcriptase - polymerase chain reaction