Zoonotic pathogens in equids in Central Europe: a systematic review.

The research article explores the catalog of zoonotic pathogens found in equids across Central Europe, along with trends in related research over the past decades.

Overview of the Research

• The research aims to catalogue zoonotic pathogens in equids within Central Europe and analyse trends in the related research. Zoonotic pathogens are disease-causing germs that can be spread between animals and humans. Equids refer to horses, donkeys, and other members of the horse family, which are often in close human proximity owing to their diverse uses.
• The research involved a systematic literature search of publications on zoonotic pathogens in equids from nine Central European countries, conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines.
• The search through three databases resulted in the discovery of 1,435 publications, out of which 256 were included in the final review. These publications spanned 58 years of research from 1964 to 2022.

Findings of the Research

• The analysis showed that there has been an increase in publications on equine-associated zoonotic pathogens since the 1990s, reflecting the escalating global concerns concerning zoonoses. In recent times, there has been a surge in research on emerging zoonotic agents.
• A total of 191 zoonotic pathogens were scrutinised during the research period, with the ten most studied pathogens forming 60.2% of the included literature.
• The study also revealed collaborative efforts from 24 countries, forming nine research groups in the region. Key contributors to the research network included Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and the USA.
• The research reported 183 zoonotic taxa potentially infecting both equids and humans in Central Europe, categorised into 79.2% bacteria, 15.8% eukaryotes, and 4.9% viruses. This figure marks a significant increase from the 56 reported in previous studies.
• Pairwise comparisons showed that Italy and Germany had the highest number of common pathogens, followed by Italy and Switzerland, and then Germany and Switzerland.

Conclusions Drawn from the Research

• The research provides a comprehensive and updated list of zoonotic pathogens in equids in Central Europe.
• It also highlights emerging threats like the West Nile virus.
• The importance of continued surveillance and cross-border collaboration to mitigate these risks is underscored by the study.