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
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190101364
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$422,460.00
Summary
Securing future supplies of chicken-meat protein. This project aims to generate advanced knowledge in amino acid metabolism in poultry in order to reduce soybean inclusion in broiler diets. Chicken-meat is the dominant animal protein source in human diets in Australia. However, Australia chicken-meat industry will need to increase production by more than 40 per cent to meet population growth by 2050. Soybean meal is the major protein source in poultry diets but the sustainability of increased so ....Securing future supplies of chicken-meat protein. This project aims to generate advanced knowledge in amino acid metabolism in poultry in order to reduce soybean inclusion in broiler diets. Chicken-meat is the dominant animal protein source in human diets in Australia. However, Australia chicken-meat industry will need to increase production by more than 40 per cent to meet population growth by 2050. Soybean meal is the major protein source in poultry diets but the sustainability of increased soy production is problematic. The expected outcomes of this project will be an increase in our future capacity to produce affordable, healthy chicken-meat with humane animal welfare by novel dietary formulations. Chicken-meat production generates less greenhouse gases than its competitors but this project will contribute to the reduction of harmful environmental outputs and ensure food security for Australia.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
Development of novel omega-3 enriched poultry products. New Health recommendations and changes to the Food Standards Code encourage greater dietary intake of omega-3 (w-3) fatty acids. Our core research on modifying fatty acid composition of poultry tissues and preliminary studies with our industry partner's proprietary fishmeal product (PorcOmega) have indicated the feasibility of producing novel meat products and eggs with high w-3 contents, which would qualify to carry a new nutrition label. ....Development of novel omega-3 enriched poultry products. New Health recommendations and changes to the Food Standards Code encourage greater dietary intake of omega-3 (w-3) fatty acids. Our core research on modifying fatty acid composition of poultry tissues and preliminary studies with our industry partner's proprietary fishmeal product (PorcOmega) have indicated the feasibility of producing novel meat products and eggs with high w-3 contents, which would qualify to carry a new nutrition label. We now propose, in collaboration with our industry partner, to assess the viability of producing such products by conducting poultry feeding trials with PorcOmega on a commercial scale and evaluating both the levels of w-3 enrichement of chicken breast, thigh and sausages, shelf-life and consumer acceptability (sensory evaluation) of these products. We expect to establish feeding strategies for adoption by commercial producers of premium poultry and eggs for local or export markets.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347223
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$100,000.00
Summary
Quantitative PCR facility for New England region of NSW. The project will deliver the first real-time PCR facility in the New England Region of NSW for use by University, CSIRO and Industry scientists. The facility will be based at the University of New England and be used by animal scientists, molecular biologists, parasitologists, immunologists and botanists at these institutions, in many cases in collaborative research projects. It will also support the training of seven PhD students and a po ....Quantitative PCR facility for New England region of NSW. The project will deliver the first real-time PCR facility in the New England Region of NSW for use by University, CSIRO and Industry scientists. The facility will be based at the University of New England and be used by animal scientists, molecular biologists, parasitologists, immunologists and botanists at these institutions, in many cases in collaborative research projects. It will also support the training of seven PhD students and a post-doctoral fellow. The facility will be unique to the region and will remove our current need to use facilities in Brisbane or Sydney.Read moreRead less
DEEP DRILLING OF THE HUMAN PLASMA PROTEOME. Like turning out city lights lets you see the faint stars more clearly - removal of high abundance proteins from human biofluids allows quantum leaps in biomarker discovery. This project will develop products that remove the biggest obstacle in proteomics - high abundance proteins (city lights). Cheap, efficient and routine removal of abundant proteins will amplify the power of ?cutting edge? proteomic technologies in the discovery of novel biomarkers ....DEEP DRILLING OF THE HUMAN PLASMA PROTEOME. Like turning out city lights lets you see the faint stars more clearly - removal of high abundance proteins from human biofluids allows quantum leaps in biomarker discovery. This project will develop products that remove the biggest obstacle in proteomics - high abundance proteins (city lights). Cheap, efficient and routine removal of abundant proteins will amplify the power of ?cutting edge? proteomic technologies in the discovery of novel biomarkers. This is possible because undiscovered low copy number biomarkers (faint stars) exist in human diagnostic fluids at levels far lower than current proteomic array detection limits.Read moreRead less