Review of the Global Epidemiology and Spread of Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus Serotype O Lineages with Pandemic Potential

Subject Areas : veterinary science

Amir Javadi ¹ , محمد نوری ² , آرش قلیانچی لنگرودی ³ , Mohsen Imandar ⁴

1 - Faculty of internal medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
2 - استاد گروه علوم درمانگاهی، دانشکده دامپزشکی، دانشگاه شهید چمران اهواز، اهواز، ایران
3 - گروه میکروبیولوژی و ایمونولوژی، دانشگاه تهران
4 - D.V.M. & D.V.Sc. in Veterinary Microbiology, The Head of Health and Management of Animal Diseases Unit of Qazvin Province Directorate of Iran Veterinary Organization, Qazvin, Iran

Received: 2025-06-10 Accepted : 2025-09-03 Published : 2025-09-26

Keywords: Serotype O, PanAsia, Ind-2001, SA-2018, Epidemiology, Pandemic potential, Vaccine,

Abstract :

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) represents a significant global threat to farm animal populations due to its highly contagious nature, transboundary spread, and substantial economic repercussions. Among the seven serotypes of FMDV, serotype O has the potential for wide dispersion and causing a pandemic. This review synthesizes information from the provided sources to track the emergence, spread, molecular characteristics, and impact of key serotype O lineages, specifically focusing on developments since 2018. Crucially, a distinct O/ME-SA/Ind-2018 (SA-2018) lineage emerged in India in 2018, exhibiting significant genetic divergence from Ind-2001. This SA-2018 lineage has subsequently expanded its geographical reach beyond India, notably appearing in Sri Lanka (2019), the Persian Gulf countries of the United Arab Emirates and Oman (2021), and recently in Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Palestine (Oct-Dec 2024), and Germany (Jan 2025). The spread to the Persian Gulf appears linked to live animal imports, highlighting vulnerabilities in trade pathways. Molecular analyses, including phylogenetic relationships and VP1 mutations, underscore the genetic evolution of these strains, with concerns raised regarding vaccine efficacy, particularly for the emergent MYMBD21 subclade within the 2018 lineage in Bangladesh. The detection of SA-2018 in regions previously free of FMD for decades, such as Germany, emphasizes the significant risk posed to both FMD-endemic and FMD-free areas. Mitigating the impact of these pandemic-capable lineages requires continuous, comprehensive surveillance, rapid identification, timely alerts, and robust international collaboration to safeguard livestock health and economic stability.

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