The National Reference Laboratory for peste des petits ruminants was established at SVU Prague in 2018. Our laboratory closely cooperates with the European Reference Laboratory for Small Ruminant Peste (EURL- PPR) in Montpellier and participates annually in international comparative tests organised by this laboratory.
The causative agent of peste des petits ruminants is an RNA virus of the family Paramyxoviridae, genus Morbilivirus.
The global epidemiological situation is constantly changing, and peste des petits ruminants has spread rapidly in Africa and throughout Asia since it was first described in Côte d'Ivoire in the 1940s. Four genetically distinct lineages have now been identified, but all belong to the same serotype. Lines I - III originated in Africa, while line IV is Asian in origin. Lineage IV is the most widespread , occuring in Africa and the European part of Turkey in addition to Asia.
In the European Union, the disease appeared in Bulgaria in 2018 and is currently no longer present in the EU.
