Control of Viral Diseases and Reproductive Management in Swine

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 809

Editor


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Guest Editor
Clinic of Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: porcine medicine; porcine herd health management; porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV); porcine circovirus-associated diseases (PCVAD); porcine respiratory disease complex (PRDC); reproductive diseases in sows and boars; welfare and production; heat stress; alternatives to antibiotics; vaccines; feed additives; mycotoxins; zoonoses
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Swine production plays a pivotal role in global food security, yet it faces persistent threats from viral pathogens and reproductive disorders that compromise both animal welfare and economic sustainability. Diseases such as Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), African Swine Fever (ASF), Porcine Circovirus Disease (PCV2/3), Swine Influenza Virus (SIV), and Pseudorabies continue to challenge producers worldwide, while reproductive inefficiencies—including embryonic loss, low farrowing rates, and subfertility in sows and boars—remain leading causes of reduced herd output. Critically, the intersection of these two domains is increasingly recognized, as several viral agents directly impair reproductive function, making an integrated approach both timely and necessary.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, bringing together researchers and clinicians at the forefront of swine health and reproductive medicine.

This Special Issue aims to consolidate current knowledge on the prevention, diagnosis, and control of viral diseases in swine, with emphasis on their interface with reproductive performance, bridging virology, reproductive physiology, immunology, and production medicine. We welcome contributions applicable across diverse production systems and aligned with the journal's scope in veterinary and farm animal sciences.

For this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Epidemiology and molecular characterization of swine viral pathogens (PRRSV, ASFv, PCV2/3, SIV, PRV);
  • Vaccination strategies and biosecurity protocols;
  • Impact of viral infections on sow and boar reproductive performance;
  • Hormonal synchronization, artificial insemination, and farrowing management;
  • Diagnosis and management of virus-associated reproductive failure;
  • One Health perspectives on zoonotic swine diseases;
  • Precision livestock farming and statistical modeling in herd health monitoring.

Prof. Dr. Vasileios Papatsiros
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • swine viral diseases
  • porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS)
  • African swine fever (ASF)
  • reproductive management
  • herd health
  • biosecurity
  • vaccination strategies
  • artificial insemination
  • boar fertility
  • One Health

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 3104 KB  
Article
Heat Stress, Indoor Microclimate, and Lactation Feed Intake in Commercial Mediterranean Sows: Parity Effects and a Daily Resolution Predictive Model
by Lampros Fotos, Aris Pourlis, Eirini Valasi, Georgios I. Papakonstantinou, Konstantinos Kousenidis, Athanasios Sougias, George Tsegas, Eleftherios Chourdakis, Zisis Tsiropoulos, Alexandra V. Michailidou, Christos Vlachocostas and Vasileios G. Papatsiros
Life 2026, 16(8), 1306; https://doi.org/10.3390/life16081306 - 9 Aug 2026
Viewed by 604
Abstract
Heat stress (HS) suppresses voluntary feed intake in lactating sows, yet individual-level characterization of indoor and outdoor Temperature–Humidity Index (THI) linked to feed intake is rare in Mediterranean commercial settings. This prospective observational study enrolled 272 F1-crossbred sows (parities 1–7) farrowing from May–October [...] Read more.
Heat stress (HS) suppresses voluntary feed intake in lactating sows, yet individual-level characterization of indoor and outdoor Temperature–Humidity Index (THI) linked to feed intake is rare in Mediterranean commercial settings. This prospective observational study enrolled 272 F1-crossbred sows (parities 1–7) farrowing from May–October 2025 at a commercial Greek farm. Outdoor THI was computed from 8760 hourly records and indoor THI from calibrated dataloggers; individual daily lactation feed intake (days 1–30) was recorded via RFID transponder-feeders. Building cooling (ΔTHI = 3.7–14.3) attenuated but did not eliminate mild-to-moderate indoor stress from June–September. Only parity and stillbirth count were Bonferroni-significant correlates of feed intake (parity: β = +0.142, p = 0.002). A sow-day Gradient Boosting model, evaluated by grouped cross-validation to prevent within-sow leakage, achieved CV-R2 = 0.406 ± 0.045, providing a validated, herd-tested framework for parity-stratified feeding management, pending external validation across farms, genetics, and climates. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Control of Viral Diseases and Reproductive Management in Swine)
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