Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140100735
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$395,204.00
Summary
Understanding infectious laryngotracheitis virus recombination. This project will study the factors that lead to recombination between strains of infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) concomitant with increased virulence. In previous studies of ILTV, two new genotypes of virulent field strains were shown to be independent recombinants derived from distinct attenuated ILTV commercial vaccines. These strains became the dominant field viruses responsible for widespread and severe disease outbre ....Understanding infectious laryngotracheitis virus recombination. This project will study the factors that lead to recombination between strains of infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) concomitant with increased virulence. In previous studies of ILTV, two new genotypes of virulent field strains were shown to be independent recombinants derived from distinct attenuated ILTV commercial vaccines. These strains became the dominant field viruses responsible for widespread and severe disease outbreaks in Australian poultry flocks. This project will enhance understanding of the conditions that led to these deleterious natural recombination events and enable the industry to avoid the emergence of new virulent field strains in the future. Read moreRead less
Salmonella in poultry: improving vaccine efficacy . The central aim of this project is to increase the antigenicity of aroA mutant Salmonella Typhimurium vaccines, in particular Bioproperties’ Vaxsafe® ST. Increased antigenicity will affect the gut microbiota and stimulate a stronger host immune response improving vaccine efficacy and the duration of protection against S. Typhimurium in poultry. This will ultimately reduce bacterial loads in the farm environment, mitigate downstream contaminatio ....Salmonella in poultry: improving vaccine efficacy . The central aim of this project is to increase the antigenicity of aroA mutant Salmonella Typhimurium vaccines, in particular Bioproperties’ Vaxsafe® ST. Increased antigenicity will affect the gut microbiota and stimulate a stronger host immune response improving vaccine efficacy and the duration of protection against S. Typhimurium in poultry. This will ultimately reduce bacterial loads in the farm environment, mitigate downstream contamination of the food supply chain, and reduce the number of human salmonellosis cases.Read moreRead less
Reducing the health & economic burden of Campylobacter using a live vaccine. The aim of the project is to develop a vaccine to reduce Campylobacter bacteria in chickens. Campylobacters cause disease in both poultry and humans. Poultry products are the most common source of human infections. By reducing Campylobacter in poultry, the transfer to humans will be reduced. The expected outcomes arising from this work will be a reduction of the economic burden of poultry losses, in an Australian indust ....Reducing the health & economic burden of Campylobacter using a live vaccine. The aim of the project is to develop a vaccine to reduce Campylobacter bacteria in chickens. Campylobacters cause disease in both poultry and humans. Poultry products are the most common source of human infections. By reducing Campylobacter in poultry, the transfer to humans will be reduced. The expected outcomes arising from this work will be a reduction of the economic burden of poultry losses, in an Australian industry valued at $2.8 billion/year, and an improvement in food safety, thus helping to reduce the burden of foodborne illness, estimated to be $1.2 billion dollars/year. This project is, therefore, poised to benefit the Australian economy, specifically primary producers and the general public, by targeted vaccination of poultry.Read moreRead less
Development of a live vaccine for gut health in poultry. Development of a live vaccine for gut health in poultry. The project aims to develop a live vaccine against necrotic enteritis, a disease of poultry estimated to cost the global poultry industry $5-6 billion USD/annum. It builds on work that has demonstrated the efficacy of an experimental vaccine. The proven antigen, NetB, will be expressed in live delivery vehicles, including the apicomplexan parasite Eimeria and several bacteria strains ....Development of a live vaccine for gut health in poultry. Development of a live vaccine for gut health in poultry. The project aims to develop a live vaccine against necrotic enteritis, a disease of poultry estimated to cost the global poultry industry $5-6 billion USD/annum. It builds on work that has demonstrated the efficacy of an experimental vaccine. The proven antigen, NetB, will be expressed in live delivery vehicles, including the apicomplexan parasite Eimeria and several bacteria strains particularly suited to use in chickens. Comparative analysis of the different vaccine vehicles will allow evaluation of the relative advantages and disadvantage of the different vehicles for delivery of heterologous vaccine antigens, thus informing the choice of appropriate vectors for this and other vaccine applications.Read moreRead less
Using transgenic plant-based production and delivery systems to develop an avian influenza vaccine. This project aims to provide proof-of-concept for the rapid production of plant-made vaccines of high strategic value to the poultry industry. Plant-made AI vaccines would help safeguard primary industries in Australia from exotic influenza strains and shield rural communities from the impact of stock losses. This collaboration will also contribute to the Molecular Farming industry by ensuring tha ....Using transgenic plant-based production and delivery systems to develop an avian influenza vaccine. This project aims to provide proof-of-concept for the rapid production of plant-made vaccines of high strategic value to the poultry industry. Plant-made AI vaccines would help safeguard primary industries in Australia from exotic influenza strains and shield rural communities from the impact of stock losses. This collaboration will also contribute to the Molecular Farming industry by ensuring that Australian interests are considered as this frontier technology tackles the challenges of turning academic research into marketable products. The key features of an oral plant-made AI vaccine, including rapid and non-egg based production, also make this an attractive technology for the future development of swine and human influenza vaccines.Read moreRead less
Molecular approaches to solving current and emerging problems in the epidemiology and diagnosis of Marek's disease in Australia. Marek's disease (MD) is a ubiquitous viral disease of chickens that is currently controlled in meat chickens by blanket vaccination of all chickens. However, as has happened overseas, the efficacy of the HVT vaccine being used in Australia is breaking down resulting in subclinical and clinical losses due to MD. To assist industry deal with this situation we propose to ....Molecular approaches to solving current and emerging problems in the epidemiology and diagnosis of Marek's disease in Australia. Marek's disease (MD) is a ubiquitous viral disease of chickens that is currently controlled in meat chickens by blanket vaccination of all chickens. However, as has happened overseas, the efficacy of the HVT vaccine being used in Australia is breaking down resulting in subclinical and clinical losses due to MD. To assist industry deal with this situation we propose to develop novel molecular methods for the quantification of Marek's disease viruses (MDV) in the host and the environment, to use these methods to design effective early monitoring systems for MD in broilers that predict disease and performance outcomes, and to develop an epidemiological model that will predict the spread and severity of MD as failure of vaccinal protection progresses.Read moreRead less
Glycan-based prebiotic approaches to increase food safety in Australia. Since the launch of the first Australian Animal Sector National Antimicrobial Resistance Plan (2018) several approaches have been suggested to reduce the use antibiotics in agriculture, however no alternatives to antibiotics have been suggested or trialled. In this proposal we aim to develop a novel glycan-based prebiotic strategy to reduce Campylobacter jejuni colonisation in chicken and poultry by disrupting important glyc ....Glycan-based prebiotic approaches to increase food safety in Australia. Since the launch of the first Australian Animal Sector National Antimicrobial Resistance Plan (2018) several approaches have been suggested to reduce the use antibiotics in agriculture, however no alternatives to antibiotics have been suggested or trialled. In this proposal we aim to develop a novel glycan-based prebiotic strategy to reduce Campylobacter jejuni colonisation in chicken and poultry by disrupting important glycan-glycan interactions. Outcomes of this proposal is a cost-effective antibiotic- and vaccine-independent animal feed supplement strategy that will decrease the risk of human food-borne illness and therefore promoting food safety and public health in Australia. Read moreRead less
Linking immunomodulation and latency in alphaherpesvirus infection. Herpesviruses cause major diseases in humans and all domestic animal species. Latency forms a significant part of the evolutionary success of herpesviruses, by enabling transmission of the virus throughout the lifetime of the host. Our work has shown that an alphaherpesvirus protein can divert the host’s immune response to become more antibody-mediated and less T cell-mediated. This study explores the consequences of this immune ....Linking immunomodulation and latency in alphaherpesvirus infection. Herpesviruses cause major diseases in humans and all domestic animal species. Latency forms a significant part of the evolutionary success of herpesviruses, by enabling transmission of the virus throughout the lifetime of the host. Our work has shown that an alphaherpesvirus protein can divert the host’s immune response to become more antibody-mediated and less T cell-mediated. This study explores the consequences of this immune diversion, and examines whether this reduced T cell response enables the development of latent infections. Disrupting the virus-host balance by alterations to this conserved viral protein will enable novel approaches to controlling these economically significant viruses.Read moreRead less
Genetic regulation of avian sex determination. This project aims to enhance our understanding of gonadal sex determination (testis versus ovary development), using innovative genetic approaches that exploit the avian embryo as a model system. The project aims to define the key molecular events regulating gonadal sex determination in birds. It intends to enhance knowledge in the area of cell biology, embryology, and sex determination specifically. Importantly, it will have application to the poul ....Genetic regulation of avian sex determination. This project aims to enhance our understanding of gonadal sex determination (testis versus ovary development), using innovative genetic approaches that exploit the avian embryo as a model system. The project aims to define the key molecular events regulating gonadal sex determination in birds. It intends to enhance knowledge in the area of cell biology, embryology, and sex determination specifically. Importantly, it will have application to the poultry industry. Currently, half of all hatchlings (the undesired sex) are culled. The proposed project intends to illuminate those genetic pathways that can be targeted to produce single-sex lines of birds, a major goal of the multi-billion dollar Australian and global poultry industries.Read moreRead less
Molecular approaches to limit herpesvirus recombination. This project aims to generate safer attenuated herpesvirus vaccines for use in veterinary medicine by genetically manipulating the herpesvirus genome to reduce virus recombination. Recombination is recognised as a safety concern for a range of attenuated herpesvirus vaccines. This project is expected to generate viruses that have an impaired capacity to recombine with other viruses. These viruses will then be tested as candidate vaccines f ....Molecular approaches to limit herpesvirus recombination. This project aims to generate safer attenuated herpesvirus vaccines for use in veterinary medicine by genetically manipulating the herpesvirus genome to reduce virus recombination. Recombination is recognised as a safety concern for a range of attenuated herpesvirus vaccines. This project is expected to generate viruses that have an impaired capacity to recombine with other viruses. These viruses will then be tested as candidate vaccines for use in veterinary medicine. This offers a new approach to developing safer veterinary vaccines that will benefit our important animal industries.Read moreRead less