Division 1

ASF-specific antibody detection is recommended for subacute and chronic forms as well as for large-scale testing and ASF eradication programmes, for several reasons:

1. (i)

   antibodies are rapidly produced in the infected pig. In these pigs antibodies are usually detectable in serum samples from seven to ten days after infection;

2. (ii)

   no vaccines are available against ASF. This means that ASF-specific antibodies are only induced by ASF virus infection;

3. (iii)

   the long-lasting antibodies response. In pigs that have recovered from the disease, specific antibodies can be detected at high levels for many months or even for the lifetime of some of these pigs.

Specific ASF antibodies of maternal origin can be detected in piglets during the first weeks of life. The half-life of maternal antibodies in piglets is about three weeks. If found in piglets older than three months, ASF antibodies are very unlikely to be of maternal origin.