Virulence determinants influencing re-emergence of a complex RNA virus. This project intends to examine the effects that specific genes in naturally occurring recombinants have on their capacity to cause disease and spread between chickens. Coronaviruses are major pathogens of domestic animals throughout the world. Recurrent re-emergence of the coronavirus of chickens, infectious bronchitis virus, has been associated with recombination between wild type viruses and vaccine viruses, but the facto ....Virulence determinants influencing re-emergence of a complex RNA virus. This project intends to examine the effects that specific genes in naturally occurring recombinants have on their capacity to cause disease and spread between chickens. Coronaviruses are major pathogens of domestic animals throughout the world. Recurrent re-emergence of the coronavirus of chickens, infectious bronchitis virus, has been associated with recombination between wild type viruses and vaccine viruses, but the factors influencing this, and in particular the selective advantages genes from vaccine viruses confer on these recombinants, are unknown. The ultimate aim of the project is to identify both novel vaccines and alternative management strategies that might reduce the frequency of re-emergence of this virus and other coronaviruses.Read moreRead less
Manipulation of the growth potential and carcass composition of domestic animal species. Finding alternatives to repeated growth hormone(GH) injection to boost production efficiency and minimise carcass fatness remains an important target for animal research. This application exploits the two novel approaches to achieve this goal through: 1. the administration of the GH releasing peptides to the neonate to imprint an enhanced GH secretory pattern and feed conversion efficiency during growth ....Manipulation of the growth potential and carcass composition of domestic animal species. Finding alternatives to repeated growth hormone(GH) injection to boost production efficiency and minimise carcass fatness remains an important target for animal research. This application exploits the two novel approaches to achieve this goal through: 1. the administration of the GH releasing peptides to the neonate to imprint an enhanced GH secretory pattern and feed conversion efficiency during growth to maturity and 2. the development of an orally active form of these peptides by conjugation with VitB12 to facilitate intestinal absorption through the VitB12 transport mechanism for delivery to the hypothalamic/pituitary axis of animals nearing maturity.Read moreRead less
Functional identification of vaccine targets in pathogenic mycoplasmas. Mycoplasmas are important bacterial pathogens in domestic animals that are incompletely controlled by current vaccines. As a result current control measures for the diseases they cause rely on ongoing treatment with antibiotics. This project will aim to use functional genomics and metabolomics to determine the function of specific surface proteins of a model mycoplasma to identify targets for novel approaches to vaccines aga ....Functional identification of vaccine targets in pathogenic mycoplasmas. Mycoplasmas are important bacterial pathogens in domestic animals that are incompletely controlled by current vaccines. As a result current control measures for the diseases they cause rely on ongoing treatment with antibiotics. This project will aim to use functional genomics and metabolomics to determine the function of specific surface proteins of a model mycoplasma to identify targets for novel approaches to vaccines against these pathogens, and to then assess the potential for inclusion of these proteins in vaccines. Ultimately this will lead to improved vaccines against these important pathogens, improving agricultural productivity and reducing the use of antibiotics in intensively raised livestock.Read moreRead less
Optimising the efficacy of mycoplasma vaccines in the field. Optimising the efficacy of mycoplasma vaccines in the field. This project intends to examine the effect of antibiotic treatment, killed vaccines and immunosuppressive viruses on the protective immunity induced by a model novel vaccine against the important poultry pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum. The continued circulation of pathogenic mycoplasmas in intensively managed animals is a major animal health problem. Live attenuated vaccin ....Optimising the efficacy of mycoplasma vaccines in the field. Optimising the efficacy of mycoplasma vaccines in the field. This project intends to examine the effect of antibiotic treatment, killed vaccines and immunosuppressive viruses on the protective immunity induced by a model novel vaccine against the important poultry pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum. The continued circulation of pathogenic mycoplasmas in intensively managed animals is a major animal health problem. Live attenuated vaccines could reduce disease, but we have limited understanding of the best conditions for their use. This project will generate data to guide both use and development of live mycoplasma vaccines. It is expected to have significant impacts on animal health, welfare and production, and public health by reducing the use of antibiotics to control mycoplasmoses.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