♦ 01 April 2016 ♦

Laboratory

The Virology Laboratory in Athens Veterinary Center has been involved in rabies diagnosis since 1951 and is the National Reference Laboratory for animal rabies in Greece from the beginning of 1979. The Virology Laboratory has been recently placed in the Department of Molecular Diagnostics, FMD, Virological, Ricketsial and Exotic Diseases, head of which is Dr Eleni Chondrokouki.

It is responsible for rabies diagnosis in animals collected in the context of rabies passive and active surveillance programmes. The lab is also recognized by the European Commission as approved laboratory, since 2000, for the performance of rabies serological test (FAVN test) in the frame of regulation for non-commercial animal movements.

The rabies laboratory team is composed of Dr Konstantia Tasioudi (DVM, MSc, PhD), Dr Peristera Iliadou (DVM, MSc), Dr Aikaterini Kirtzalidou (DVM, MSc, Phd) who joined the team last year and the technician Dimitrios Bakakos, who are mainly involved in rabies diagnosis.

The phylogenetic analysis of the Greek rabies strains has been performed by Dr Eirini Agianniotaki (DVM, MPH, MSc Mol Med). Currently, there are also two veterinarians, Gerasimos Markantonatos (DVM, MSc), Dimos Papatheodorou (DVM) and one technician (Mrs Vassiliki Pani), who are recruited for the needs of the National Greek rabies programs and the related costs are co-financed both by the Greek State budget and the European Commission.

Methods

The following techniques are performed in our lab:
•    Fluorescence antibody test (FAT)
•    Molecular techniques (Real-time and Conventional PCR)
•    Fluorescence Virus Neutralisation test (FAVN)
•    ELISA for detection of rabies abs in active surveillance samples
•    Tetracycline detection
•    Age determination of foxes

History of rabies in Greece

Greece was a rabies free country since 1987, when the last case was reported in a dog. Up to 1987 rabies in Greece was mainly urban. Between 1971 and 1987, 248 domestic animal rabies cases were recorded, of which only 6 occurred between 1981 and 1987 (4). The wide compulsory vaccination of dogs as well as the control of stray dog population, were the two main measures that led to the elimination of rabies in Greece.
Greece maintained the rabies free status for almost twenty five years, when the first rabies case was laboratory confirmed on 19 October, 2012 in a red fox in Palaiokastro village, found around 60 kilometers from the Albanian border (Prefecture of Kozani, Western Macedonia).
 
Current Situation of rabies in Greece

In the recent outbreak, rabies cycle appears to be sylvatic, with the red fox as the main reservoir of the virus. From October 2012 until now, 48 rabies cases have been laboratory confirmed (40 red foxes, 5 dogs, 2 bovines and 1 cat). The last positive case was diagnosed in a red fox in the regional unit of Pella on May 2014. The number of rabies suspected animals investigated in the frame of passive surveillance in Greece, the period between January 2012 and December 2015, were 1761. In detail, 237 animals were tested in 2012, 587 in 2013, 410 in 2014 and 257 in 2015.
The first ever oral vaccination campaign carried out in Greece was initiated on 11 October 2013 and until now there have been three autumn oral vaccination campaigns. The third one is in progress, it will be completed by the end of March 2016 and the next ORV campaign will take place during spring 2016. The implementation of oral vaccination campaigns of wildlife against rabies will be continued in the following years and along with a strengthened rabies passive surveillance programme, Greece could regain the rabies free status in the near future.

Our recent rabies publications

1.    Korou LM et al. Evaluation of the first oral rabies vaccination campaign of the red foxes in Greece. Vaccine. 2016 Jan 2; 34(1):41-8.
2.    Tasioudi KE et al. Bovine rabies in Greece in 2013.Vet Rec. 2015 Dec 12;177(23):598.
3.    Tasioudi KE et al. Recurrence of animal rabies, Greece, 2012. Emerg Infect Dis. 2014 Feb;20(2):326-8.
4.    Tsiodras S  et al. Rabies in Greece; historical perspectives in view of the current re-emergence in wild and domestic animals. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2014 Nov-Dec;12 (6 Pt A):628-35.
5.    Tsiodras S et al. Re-emergence of animal rabies in northern Greece and subsequent human exposure, October 2012 - March 2013. Euro Surveill. 2013 May 2;18(18):20474.
 

.pdf version

♦ 21 March 2016 ♦

The report of the Rabies Global Conference held last 10-11 December 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland, is now available online. This meeting was organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and supported by the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC). You can find the report either on the OIE website or the WHO website. The conference report ends with a poster “The five pillars of rabies elimination (STOP-R)”, detailing the importance of close collaborations between the 5 main fields of action which are socio-cultural, technical, organization, political and resources. See the poster…
 

♦ 01 April 2016 ♦

Laboratories which have registered for the annual rabies serology proficiency test for 2016 dedicated to the FAVN test (Fluorescent Antibody Virus Neutralization) and/or the RFFIT (Rapid Fluorescent Focus Inhibition Test) will receive the test panel soon now, as it be sent last week of April. A successful participation to the rabies serology proficiency allows laboratories to be approved by the European Commission for the serological testing in the context of the international movements of pets. For more information on this test, please contact the laboratory.
 

♦ 01 April 2016 ♦

The panels for the annual rabies diagnostic inter-laboratory test will be sent on 30 May 2016. The test is composed of a panel of 10 samples to be tested with the chosen technique(s) (FAT, RTCIT, Conventional and/or Real Time RT-PCR) as well as a corresponding online technical questionnaire for each tested technique. Participating laboratories which have not sent import permit nor the unilateral commitment yet should sent it/them to the EURL for rabies as soon as possible.
 

♦ 01 April 2016 ♦

If you are from a NRL from EU Member States and have not answer to the annual overview of test performed in the NRLs, it is still time to do it! The questionnaire has to be answered online, and laboratories get a printable summary of the declared data at the end of the test for their records. As usual, this investigation will result in a report in the same mood as the previous years. If your laboratory is concerned by this survey, you must have received the link to the questionnaire. If not, contact the EURL for rabies. Deadline is postponed to 15 April 2016.
 

♦ 03 December 2015 ♦

[Relayed from OIE website – 4 December] OIE and CITES signed recently an agreement to deepen the collaboration between the two organisations. This agreement provides a formal foundation for expanded communication, cooperation and collaboration in order to protect CITES-listed species and conserve biodiversity by ensuring the efficient implementation of surveillance and disease control measures needed to protect animal and human health worldwide. Rabies, Ebola haemorrhagic fever, West Nile Fever, Avian influenza, Brucellosis, Foot and mouth disease: these are only a few examples of well-known, emerging, or re-emerging diseases that are originally found or circulated in wildlife and which potentially have (… Read more).
 

♦ 10 November 2015 ♦

[Relayed from FAO website – 10 November] FAO and GARC have agreed to collaborate on the following: encourage the development and implementation of national and regional rabies control and elimination strategies; promote national rabies surveillance systems, including transparency/notification, and rabies control or elimination strategies in line with international standards; advocate for more involvement of national and local authorities in rabies control, in particular Ministries of Agriculture and veterinary services; promote World Rabies Day activities through their respective networks, including communication strategies related to it. (…Read more)
 

♦ 10-11 December 2015 ♦

[Relayed from OIE & WHO websites] A new framework to eliminate human rabies and save tens of thousands of lives each year has been launched by WHO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Global Alliance for the Control of Rabies (GARC). The framework calls for 3 key actions - making human vaccines and antibodies affordable, ensuring people who get bitten receive prompt treatment, and mass dog vaccinations to tackle the disease at its source. Read more on the official meeting website, and the press releases on: WHO website, OIE website, and FAO website.
 

♦ 04 January 2016 ♦

[Relayed from the GARC website] Many of us invest time and resources in vaccinating dogs against rabies. We know this will not only protect dogs but also the people they live amongst. There are many examples of studies reporting vaccination of dogs to be a highly effective method of protecting public health, but do you have evidence from your own work? Many of us also invest in managing the dog population in other ways, such as limiting reproduction or persuading and supporting owners to provide greater care and oversight to their dogs. But how do you know if these activities are impacting dogs and their communities in the way you hoped? In short; how do we know our hard work is making a difference? (… See the guide)
 

♦ 04 January 2016 ♦

As every year, the EURL for rabies will organize a rabies diagnostic inter-laboratory test in 2016. This year, the test will be performed on a unique panel of 10 samples using at least one of the following techniques: FAT (Fluorescent Antibody Test), RTCIT (Rabies Tissue Culture Infection Test), Conventional RT-PCR and/or Real-Time RT-PCR. The test is composed of the panel to be tested with the chosen technique(s) as well as a corresponding online technical questionnaire for each tested technique. Registration is opened until 15 January 2016. Should you wish to register for the 2016 test, please contact the EURL for rabies for more information.