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Novel vaccines and serotyping scheme for Haemophilus parasuis. Glasser's disease, caused by the bacterium Haemophilus parasuis, is a significant problem in Australian and overseas pig industries. Current approaches to the management of Glassers disease utilise antibacterials and also vaccines. However, antibacterials are of limited effectiveness in juvenile pigs (weaners) that are difficult to medicate other than by injection, and current vaccines are only protective against the serotypes incl ....Novel vaccines and serotyping scheme for Haemophilus parasuis. Glasser's disease, caused by the bacterium Haemophilus parasuis, is a significant problem in Australian and overseas pig industries. Current approaches to the management of Glassers disease utilise antibacterials and also vaccines. However, antibacterials are of limited effectiveness in juvenile pigs (weaners) that are difficult to medicate other than by injection, and current vaccines are only protective against the serotypes included in the vaccine. We propose to examine the immune response to natural infection and identify potential vaccine candidates which will then be tested in vaccine trials. The APAI will focus on developing a DNA-based typing scheme for H. parasuis.Read moreRead less
Understanding the molecular basis of virulence in Brachyspira hyodysenteriae to improve vaccine design. Swine dysentery is a colonic infection of pigs caused by Brachyspira hyodysenteriae. The disease is widespread in Australia and causes great economic loss. An effective vaccine is not available. This study aims to identify factors associated with the bacterium's virulence, using comparative genomic and proteomic information. Virulence factors then will be targeted and tested as recombinant vac ....Understanding the molecular basis of virulence in Brachyspira hyodysenteriae to improve vaccine design. Swine dysentery is a colonic infection of pigs caused by Brachyspira hyodysenteriae. The disease is widespread in Australia and causes great economic loss. An effective vaccine is not available. This study aims to identify factors associated with the bacterium's virulence, using comparative genomic and proteomic information. Virulence factors then will be targeted and tested as recombinant vaccine candidates. This project will result in the development of an improved vaccine to control swine dysentery in rural Australia. Control of swine dysentery through vaccination will reduce antibiotic use on infected farms and improve the productivity and competitiveness of the Australian pig industry.Read moreRead less
The role of virulence factors of Clostridium difficile in food animals. Disease caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile are a significant food production animal and public health problem in many countries. Specific animal and human public health resources have been allocated in many countries in efforts to mitigate the growing epidemics. The study proposed in this application presents a significant opportunity to learn about the virulence factors of animal strains of this bacterium about w ....The role of virulence factors of Clostridium difficile in food animals. Disease caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile are a significant food production animal and public health problem in many countries. Specific animal and human public health resources have been allocated in many countries in efforts to mitigate the growing epidemics. The study proposed in this application presents a significant opportunity to learn about the virulence factors of animal strains of this bacterium about which very little is known. This project will lead to rationally designed preventative and treatment strategies that apply to both animals and humans, thereby impeding epidemics caused by C. difficile in Australia.Read moreRead less
Defining domains within Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae surface proteins that interact with host extracellular matrix: efficacy testing of candidate vaccines in swine. Over 90% of Australian commercial pig production facilities are affected by Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, the causative agent of swine enzootic pneumonia. This disease causes economic losses in Australia of over $20 million per annum and up to $1 billion per annum in major swine rearing countries worldwide. This project will determine the p ....Defining domains within Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae surface proteins that interact with host extracellular matrix: efficacy testing of candidate vaccines in swine. Over 90% of Australian commercial pig production facilities are affected by Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, the causative agent of swine enzootic pneumonia. This disease causes economic losses in Australia of over $20 million per annum and up to $1 billion per annum in major swine rearing countries worldwide. This project will determine the protective efficacy of new generation vaccines against M. hyopneumoniae, which aim to block the colonisation process and prevent disease .Read moreRead less
Vaccine against leptospirosis. This project will utilise the information from the determination of the complete genome sequence of Leptospira borgpetersenii serovar Hardjobovis at Monash University. Bioinformatics analysis will be used to allow a global approach to identify all putative vaccine antigens which will be cloned, expressed and purified and their protective capacity investigated.
Identification and characterisation of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae surface-molecules that interact with the host epithelium. Mycoplasma hyponeumoniae causes porcine enzootic pneumonia, a disease that significantly impacts swine production. Current vaccines are unable to prevent colonisation of the respiratory tract and are costly to produce and administer. The expression of microbial adhesins that mediate adherence to the extracellular matrix is considered the initial step in host colonisation for ....Identification and characterisation of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae surface-molecules that interact with the host epithelium. Mycoplasma hyponeumoniae causes porcine enzootic pneumonia, a disease that significantly impacts swine production. Current vaccines are unable to prevent colonisation of the respiratory tract and are costly to produce and administer. The expression of microbial adhesins that mediate adherence to the extracellular matrix is considered the initial step in host colonisation for many bacterial pathogens. We propose to identify M. hyopneumoniae cell surface moleculaes that interact with components of the extracellular matrix. Targetting these cell surface molecules will lead to therapeutics that prevent disease and block colonisation, eventually eradicating the host pathogen from pig production facilities.Read moreRead less
Genomic sequencing and comparative genomic analysis for animal bacterial vaccine discovery. The aim of this project is to develop vaccines for the control of swine dysentery (pigs) and intestinal spirochaetosis (pigs and chickens). These infections cause important production-limiting diseases for which no effective vaccines are available. We will use whole genomic sequencing of the two causal species of intestinal spirochaetal bacteria, with a bioinformatics-based analysis of the data to identif ....Genomic sequencing and comparative genomic analysis for animal bacterial vaccine discovery. The aim of this project is to develop vaccines for the control of swine dysentery (pigs) and intestinal spirochaetosis (pigs and chickens). These infections cause important production-limiting diseases for which no effective vaccines are available. We will use whole genomic sequencing of the two causal species of intestinal spirochaetal bacteria, with a bioinformatics-based analysis of the data to identify potential cell surface structures that will be tested as the basis of new recombinant vaccines. Outcomes will include the development of new commercial products, increased institutional capacity in veterinary vaccine discovery, and ultimately improved animal health and production in rural Australia.Read moreRead less
Proteomics and vaccine development in swine dysentery. Swine dysentery is an infectious disease of significant economic importance caused by Brachyspira hyodysenteriae. There is no effective vaccine available. This project will combine modern techniques in microbial genomics and proteomics to identify outer membrane proteins of B. hyodysenteriae and evaluate their role as candidate vaccine antigens.