Kenya - UK partnership to develop in vitro and in vivo laboratory models for highly pathogenic tick-borne microorganisms of livestock and humans
Lead Research Organisation:
The Pirbright Institute
Department Name: Vector-borne Viral Diseases
Abstract
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| Description | The partnership between ILRI and Pirbright has been developed, with an emphasis on two vector-borne livestock diseases that are endemic in Kenya and which threaten the UK - bluetongue and African swine fever. Through staff exchanges, research capacity for both diseases is being developed at ILRI. A specific link between the ILRI Tick Unit and the Tick Cell Biobank is being developed and will be taken further after the end of this project, when ILRI have completed upgrading of their Tick Unit to allow establishment of tick cell culture therein. |
| Exploitation Route | As a direct result of the partnering award, ILRI was included in a successful EU H2020 proposal for a consortium researching bluetongue (PALE-Blu), led by University of Nottingham, including Pirbright, ILRI and the Tick Cell Biobank and worth 6 million euros. Additional grant proposals involving ILRI and members of the original partnering award from Pirbright have been submitted or are planned. |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
| Description | As a result of this partnering award, the Kenyan partner ILRI was included as a partner in an EU Horizon 2020 research grant proposal on bluetongue awarded in September 2016 and currently under negotiation (value to ILRI Euros 287,851). ILRI are also included as a partner in the BBSRC GCRF-BBRF proposal "The Tick Cell Biobank: outposts in Asia, Africa and South America", currently under consideration. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2016 |