Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160101470
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Improving poultry health and performance through microbiota manipulations. The project aims to develop methods to modulate microbiota to improve poultry health and productivity and reduce the need for antibiotics. Probiotic administration is currently the only way in agriculture to restore imbalanced intestinal microbiota. Recent research shows that intestinal microbiota resist all new-coming bacteria and remove them from the intestinal environment. The initial inoculum at the time of birth shap ....Improving poultry health and performance through microbiota manipulations. The project aims to develop methods to modulate microbiota to improve poultry health and productivity and reduce the need for antibiotics. Probiotic administration is currently the only way in agriculture to restore imbalanced intestinal microbiota. Recent research shows that intestinal microbiota resist all new-coming bacteria and remove them from the intestinal environment. The initial inoculum at the time of birth shapes the gut microbiota for life and has the strongest influence on development of the immune system. Accordingly, at-hatch administration of proven beneficial strains to poultry is likely to ensure permanent colonisation with beneficial bacteria. This process would improve both the productivity and health of poultry and other agricultural animals.Read moreRead less
Antiparastic agents to safeguard Australian livestock. This project will develop new and improved agrochemicals that can be used to treat highly multi-drug resistant parasites that infect Australian livestock, safeguarding animal health and welfare, and improving the economic viability and prosperity of the Australian livestock industry.
DNA methylation in IVF and cloned embryos. In vitro fertilisation (IVF) and cloning are new assisted reproductive technologies that in time will revolutionise genetic improvement of Australia's economically important animals. IVF and cloning can be associated with aberrant growth that results from atypical gene expression. DNA methylation is central to gene regulation and determines which genes are expressed. In this project a new technique will be used to quantify DNA methylation in naturall ....DNA methylation in IVF and cloned embryos. In vitro fertilisation (IVF) and cloning are new assisted reproductive technologies that in time will revolutionise genetic improvement of Australia's economically important animals. IVF and cloning can be associated with aberrant growth that results from atypical gene expression. DNA methylation is central to gene regulation and determines which genes are expressed. In this project a new technique will be used to quantify DNA methylation in naturally conceived, IVF and cloned embryos. The information will be used to improve IVF and cloning so that these technologies can be applied with confidence to increase the international competitiveness of Australia's livestock industries.Read moreRead less
Development of a new diet to improve insulin sensitivity and manage weight in healthy cats. This project will determine if a low carbohydrate, moderate fat, high protein diet improves insulin sensitivity and reduces weight gain in cats compared to a typical high-carbohydrate grocery line diet. It will identify risk factors for weight gain such as increased fasting insulin concentration and will also determine which simple assessment of insulin sensitivity best correlates with insulin sensitivity ....Development of a new diet to improve insulin sensitivity and manage weight in healthy cats. This project will determine if a low carbohydrate, moderate fat, high protein diet improves insulin sensitivity and reduces weight gain in cats compared to a typical high-carbohydrate grocery line diet. It will identify risk factors for weight gain such as increased fasting insulin concentration and will also determine which simple assessment of insulin sensitivity best correlates with insulin sensitivity measured by a gold standard. This project should lead to the formulation of a diet designed to improve insulin sensitivity and minimize weight gain in cats, and allow for earlier identification of cats at risk of obesity.Read moreRead less
Improving the efficiency of bovine oocyte maturation in vitro. For the dairy and beef industries, the hundreds of eggs (oocytes) in a high value cow's ovary that fail to produce a pregnancy are a wasted genetic resource. A key technology to unlocking this resource is in vitro maturation of oocytes, but the process is inefficient. One possible cause is that the current approaches to maturing oocytes in vitro do not adequately mimic the natural process in vivo. We will design new systems to matu ....Improving the efficiency of bovine oocyte maturation in vitro. For the dairy and beef industries, the hundreds of eggs (oocytes) in a high value cow's ovary that fail to produce a pregnancy are a wasted genetic resource. A key technology to unlocking this resource is in vitro maturation of oocytes, but the process is inefficient. One possible cause is that the current approaches to maturing oocytes in vitro do not adequately mimic the natural process in vivo. We will design new systems to mature cow oocytes in vitro by altering the chemical composition of maturation medium, thus improving the efficiency of laboratory embryo production and related technologies.Read moreRead less
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
Development of Novel Pesticidal Agents. We have discovered a family of naturally occurring plant proteins called the cyclotides that have potent insecticidal activity against Helicoverpa species, one of the major pests on cotton and corn in Australia and world wide. Preliminary evidence has shown that they also have activity against major pests to livestock in Australia, including sheep blowflies. To develop these proteins as potential pesticidal agents it is necessary to understand the struct ....Development of Novel Pesticidal Agents. We have discovered a family of naturally occurring plant proteins called the cyclotides that have potent insecticidal activity against Helicoverpa species, one of the major pests on cotton and corn in Australia and world wide. Preliminary evidence has shown that they also have activity against major pests to livestock in Australia, including sheep blowflies. To develop these proteins as potential pesticidal agents it is necessary to understand the structural basis for their activity. We will do this by chemically synthesising peptides with selected residues mutated to determine their effects on activity.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
Development of environmentally-friendly insecticides for the Australian livestock industry. Many insects and other arthropods are serious pests of Australian livestock. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use on pets and around the home and garden. Unfortunately, many of these arthropod pests have developed resistance to chemical insecticides. This aim of this re ....Development of environmentally-friendly insecticides for the Australian livestock industry. Many insects and other arthropods are serious pests of Australian livestock. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use on pets and around the home and garden. Unfortunately, many of these arthropod pests have developed resistance to chemical insecticides. This aim of this research program is to develop a new generation of environmentally-friendly natural products that can be used to control arthropod pests on farms and around the home and garden.Read moreRead less
Individual animal management for grazing beef cattle. This research will significantly improve the ability of the Australian beef pastoral industry to stay competitive in the world market whilst improving animal welfare standards for the industry. Labour shortages in rural and regional areas of Australia are a major problem to the grazing industry. This research will not only help address the shortfall in unskilled labour but will provide the tools for addressing many human and animal welfare ....Individual animal management for grazing beef cattle. This research will significantly improve the ability of the Australian beef pastoral industry to stay competitive in the world market whilst improving animal welfare standards for the industry. Labour shortages in rural and regional areas of Australia are a major problem to the grazing industry. This research will not only help address the shortfall in unskilled labour but will provide the tools for addressing many human and animal welfare issues associated with cattle handling. Read moreRead less