Aetiology pathogenesis and immunology of post-weaning multi-systemic wasting syndrome in pigs: genetic-environmental interactions

Post-weaning multi-systemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) is a common disease of young pigs in the U.K. It is extremely debilitating, causes considerable suffering and poor welfare, and has a high mortality of up to 20%. The disease was first recognised in 1991 and is now prevalent worldwide. Since over 1.2 billion pigs are reared annually for human consumption, then there are good commercial and ethical reasons why new diseases like PMWS should be controlled or eliminated to ensure a safe, humane and sustainable supply of pork, sausages and ham. At first scientists thought that PMWS was caused by a virus but they now realise that genetic and environmental factors must be involved, along with opportunistic secondary pathogens. This project proposes a unique interdisciplinary approach to investigate this endemic disease and will integrate modern scientific techniques from epidemiology, genetics, microbiology, pathology, molecular immunology and environmental science to identify why PMWS occurs, leading to new control methods. British pig farmers will be heavily involved in the project, thereby guaranteeing that pigs in Britain will be the first to benefit from this research, while collaboration with a major international pharmaceutical company will ensure that new veterinary products will be made available to pig farmers worldwide.