Pig health

Professor Nauwynck has been researching PCV2 virus since the emergence of PCV2-associated diseases. PCV2 caused a serious crisis in global swine health that was ultimately addressed through the development and mass deployment of effective PCV2 vaccines. He is an excellent connoisseur of this small virus that continues to surprise us.

Digestive diseases in pigs that were previously addressed individually, targeting a single pathogen, now form a digestive disease complex that we must confront from various angles.

Hans Nauwynck defines himself as a veterinary virologist, a person who works in a laboratory setting, doing precise work, like a surgeon, aiming to gain a better understanding of how animal viruses interact with their target cells. But it is much more. His deep understanding of the biological behavior of viruses allows him to fluently explain many of the “whys” that are so important for a better understading of the pathogenesis of viral diseases and the development of effective control strategies.

PRRS control measures also reduce the opportunities for different wild-type viruses to recombine and create more aggressive strains.

The first three years of the Danish PRRS reduction strategy have shown that it is possible to control and reduce the prevalence of PRRS in Danish pig production.

In the first two months, the outbreak caused more than 600 abortions and more than 150 sow deaths, destroying the weekly batch structure.