1.   The disease is very similar to one which has affected pigs in the US over the last four years.

2.   Movement of horses across the border with Malaysia has been halted because of fears the Japanese encephalitis outbreak affecting pigs could spread to racehorses, it was reported Saturday.

3.   Recently Spain has suffered periodic outbreaks of the highly contagious - and usually fatal - swine fever, which only affects pigs.

4.   Swine fever is a highly contagious, usually fatal disease affecting pigs, but experts say it poses no health risk to humans.

5.   The disease also affects pigs and has caused the deaths of hundreds of swine throughout Malaysia since it first appeared in October, the paper said.

6.   He did not say how many pigs had been affected by the virus.