Research Article | 07 Apr 2021

The misuse of antiretrovirals to boost pig and poultry productivity in Uganda and potential implications for public health

Dickson Ndoboli1,2,3, Fredrick Nganga2, Ben Lukuyu4, Barbara Wieland5, Delia Grace3,6, Amrei von Braun7, and Kristina Roesel3,8Show more
1. Central Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, P.O. Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda.
2. Biosciences Eastern and Central Africa Hub, International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, Kenya.
3. Animal and Human Health Program, International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, Kenya.
4. Feed and Forage Development Program, International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 24384, Kampala, Uganda.
5. Animal and Human Health Program, International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
6. Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Central Avenue, Chatham Maritime, Kent ME4 4TB, UK.
7. Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, University Hospital of Leipzig, Liebigstrasse 20, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.
8. Institute for Tropical Veterinary Medicine and Parasitology, Freie Universität Berlin, Robert-von-Ostertag-Strasse 7-13, 14163 Berlin, Germany.

Corresponding author: Dickson Ndoboli (D.Ndoboli@cgiar.org)

Received: 26-08-2020, Accepted: 13-10-2020, Published: 07-04-2021

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ONE HEALTH | pg no. 88-95 | Vol. 7, Issue 1 | DOI: 10.14202/IJOH.2021.88-95
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Abstract

              
Background and Aim: Since 2015, local newspapers reported that pig and poultry farmers in Uganda use antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) to promote growth in animals and control diseases. This study was conducted to assess farmers' knowledge, attitude and perceptions about the use of antiretroviral drugs as boosters in pigs and poultry and the possibility of detecting the antiretroviral drugs in meat using available laboratory methods.
Materials and Methods: In 2019, a cross-sectional study was conducted in ten districts in Uganda. In 20 focus group discussions with 100 pig and poultry farmers and 70 animal health service providers, we assessed the use of ARV in livestock enterprises. Subsequently, samples of chicken, pigs, and animal feeds were collected from volunteer participants, and screened for residues of saquinavir, lopinavir, nevirapine, and efavirenz using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrophotometer.
Results: Participants in all ten districts were predominantly smallholder farmers supplying the local markets. All groups reported the use of ARVs in pigs and broiler birds but not in layer hens. In the absence of good quality feeds, the motivation for feeding ARVs was rapid animal weight gain, as well as the control of animal diseases, for which farmers have no alternative solutions. ARVs were obtained within the community for free, against cash, or in-kind payment. Residues of lopinavir were detected in four, and saquinavir in seven districts, and all three sample matrices.
Conclusion: Our study findings confirm anecdotal news reports on ARV use in livestock. While our findings are not generalizable to the whole country, they call for a representative follow-up. As the drugs were detected in tissues destined for human consumption, the potential risk to human health warrants further investigation. Keywords: antimicrobial use, antiretroviral, growth promoters, pigs, poultry, residues.

             
Keywords: antimicrobial use, antiretroviral, growth promoters, pigs, poultry, residues.