Using synthetic biology to generate novel vaccines against avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV)

Lead Research Organisation: The Pirbright Institute
Department Name: Coronaviruses

Abstract

Chickens are vaccinated multiple times against poultry pathogens throughout their lives to protect against different diseases. Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) causes a respiratory disease in chickens making them more susceptible to bacterial infections. In addition to this, chickens infected with IBV gain less weight and produce fewer high quality eggs. It is important to vaccinate against IBV both for welfare and economic reasons. There are a number of problems with the vaccines available against IBV. There are many different strains of IBV circulating around the globe however currently available vaccines do not cross-protect against all strains. New vaccines are produced by growing a virulent strain of IBV in hen's eggs multiple times. This reduces the pathogenicity of the vaccine strain when it is given to chickens but it increases the pathogenicity of the vaccine strain for chicken embryos. Vaccines against IBV are administered by spraying poultry flocks with the vaccine or by putting the vaccine in the drinking water. It is hard to guarantee that each chicken has received the same dose, which make the vaccines less effective.
We have rationally attenuated three strains of IBV using molecular tools. These strains have not been adapted to grow in eggs so are less pathogenic for chicken embryos. This study proposes to establish whether the rationally attenuated strains of IBV could be used as vaccines, by testing the safety, stability and efficacy of all three potential vaccine strains. These novel vaccines have the potential to be given to chicks while they are still developing in the egg so that the chicks are protected against IBV infection even before they hatch. This would guarantee that each chick received the same dose of vaccine and reduce the possibility of vaccine breakdown, which would be very beneficial to the poultry industry. Safer and more efficacious vaccines against IBV will reduce the amount of antibiotics given to chickens to treat secondary bacterial infections resulting from IBV infection. The prolific use of antibiotics in farming may contribute to the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, a potentially devastating problem.
The second part of the study proposes to use molecular tools to insert the surface protein, the spike, from a different strain of IBV into one of the novel vaccine strains. The spike is the major structure on the outside of the virus that chickens develop antibodies against. It is highly variable between different strains of IBV so antibodies produced against one strain of IBV may not cross-protect against a new strain of IBV. The spike of one of the most economically damaging strains of IBV will be inserted into a vaccine strain. We will assess whether vaccinating with these recombinant viruses is able to protect against challenge with pathogenic virus containing the same spike or with a different spike. We will establish whether the two viruses containing different spikes are able to grow in competition with each other in eggs. This will investigate the potential to vaccinate eggs with both viruses; protecting against two or more important strains of IBV in a single dose.
The overall aim of this study is to use synthetic biology to generate a new generation of safer, more efficacious vaccines against the important poultry pathogen, infectious bronchitis virus.

Technical Summary

The overall aim of this project is to use synthetic biology to generate a new generation of safer, more efficacious vaccines against the important poultry pathogen, infectious bronchitis virus. We will establish whether recombinant infectious bronchitis viruses have the potential to be safe and efficacious vaccines and/or the have ability to provide cross-protection between different serotypes. We have previously developed a reverse genetics system based on a pathogenic strain of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), M41, and have used this to generate three attenuated isogenic recombinant IBVs (rIBV). This study proposes to evaluate the vaccine potential of the three rIBV in poultry. Vaccine replication and pathology induced in the trachea, kidney and reproductive tract of infected chickens will be assessed, as will the spread of vaccine to sentinel chickens. Vaccination-challenge experiments will be conducted to monitor vaccine efficacy.
We propose to use reverse genetics to swap the spike glycoprotein of the M41 strain of IBV for that of another economically important strain and will characterise the chimaeric virus in vitro, assessing the serotype and cellular tropism. To investigate how the recombinant viruses replicate in competition with each other in eggs we will use next generation sequencing to assess recombination events between the spike genes and determine the feasibility of vaccinating with both viruses in ovo. In vivo vaccination-challenge experiments will be conducted to assess whether vaccination with rIBV expressing spikes from two different serotypes together induces homologous protection and heterologous cross-protection.
The stability of all of the attenuated rIBV isolates will be assessed in ex vivo tracheal organ cultures and maternally derived antibody (MDA) positive eggs using next generation sequencing to model vaccine persistence and evolution of the viral population in poultry flocks under immune pressure.

Planned Impact

Poultry is an important food source worldwide and the global poultry industry has expanded in recent years to accommodate increasing demands for healthy, sustainable protein sources from a rising population. The FAO estimates that poultry accounts for 88% of global meat production. Viral diseases such as infectious bronchitis are a constant threat to the poultry industry through reduced meat production from broiler chickens, production of fewer, good quality eggs and animal welfare issues. In fact, infectious bronchitis is the single most economically important infectious disease affecting chickens in the UK. Improved vaccines against IBV would benefit the UK economy as an estimated £23M is spent on control of IBV per annum.
Vaccine breakdown would have a major effect on the UK poultry industry, not only in terms of bird welfare and production costs, but also associated risks to food security. This work will establish whether our novel approach to vaccine design through rational attenuation and modification of vaccine serotype is capable of producing safe and efficacious vaccines for the control of IBV that are less likely to revert to virulence. The development of safer vaccines will reduce the amount of antibiotics used to treat secondary bacterial infections associated with infectious bronchitis, which would have positive environmental impact.
The results of this study will inform approaches to development of other veterinary and human vaccines. This study will benefit The Pirbright Institute, BBSRC and Zoetis, and the wider academic community including other researchers working in the fields of molecular virology, livestock health and coronavirus research, particularly IBV. The project will provide training in virology, deep sequencing, confocal microscopy and in vivo studies. The results will be of direct benefit to the poultry industry and vaccine developers. Knowledge generated by this project will be widely disseminated to the research community through peer-reviewed journals and presentations at national and international virology conferences and interactions with members of the poultry industry and veterinarians.

Publications

10 25 50
 
Description We have investigated the role of the macrodomain in the nsp3 of the replicase gene of IBV in replication in vitro and in ex vivo tracheal organ cultures (TOCs). Data showed that the replicase modifications impacted on plaque phenotype, only marginally reducing viral replication in cell culture at the latest time point (96h). However, replication observed in TOCs has shown further implications of the replicase modifications, suggesting that a tissue specific response may be play a role in viral replication. In fact, whereas replication is not significantly impacted in cell culture if not at a very late time point, attenuation clearly occurred in vivo in birds. Evaluation of tissues collected from birds during the study indicate that viral loads may be lower in birds infected with the recombinant IBV, suggesting a possible link to the reduction of clinical symptoms. The mechanism behind the in vivo attenuation may be related to the impact of the selected modification on the host interaction, with possible implication in the interferon response, as a first line of response during viral infections. Therefore, expression of genes implicated in the interferon response and pro-inflammatory cytokines (IFNalpha, IFNbeta, IL1b, IL-6) were evaluated and correlated with the viral loads in the same tissues. Although the number of birds used for the study did not allow a robust analysis, a correlation between the wild type pathogenic IBV and a stronger immune reaction is observed compared to the replicase mutants. Analysis conducted in vitro by pre-treating cells before infection with chIFNalpha and chIFNbeta demonstrated that no effect could be observed upon treatment with chIFNalpha, whereas a clear reduction in viral titre was observed with the chIFNbeta. Further in vitro experiments are being conducted to confirm the observed correlation. For the purpose of further investigating this aspect a luciferase assay for quantification of bioactive interferon has been developed together with a panel of experimental genes to analyse through qPCR for gene expression.

In attempting to elucidate the mechanism of attenuating mutations in the replicase of IBV, we have established that mutations in rIBV replicase proteins do not affect the proof-reading activity. We have established that the replicase mutations are stable during serial passage of the rIBVs in ex vivo tracheal organs cultures or primary chicken kidney cell cultures but some mutations cause a difference in plaque phenotype in cell culture.

We have generated a new recombinant infectious bronchitis virus (rIBV) expressing the spike glycoprotein of a heterologous strain in the genetic background of an attenuated strain and we have characterised the rIBV in vitro. We have further assessed the pathogenicity of this recombinant in vivo in two genetic lines of SPF chickens. We have found that the rIBV retains a low pathogenicity causing only mild clinical signs in chicken. However, a certain reduction in ciliary activity ex vivo was recorded for a few birds belonging to a selected bird line that correlated with virus replication within the trachea and eyelid tissues. In order to establish the interaction between the two spikes during infection and simultaneous replication, a competition assay was carried out in embryonated eggs for 10 consecutive passages at variable ratios and we are conducting NGS analysis and recombination analysis.
Exploitation Route Our findings are currently academic in nature, and will increase understanding of the function of the coronavirus replicase proteins. This knowledge may be used in the rational design of vaccines against different coronaviruses in the future. Attenuated rIBVs produced may be licensed for use as live attenuated vaccines against IBV if further tests prove successful.
Sectors Agriculture

Food and Drink

 
Description Data have been presented at national and international conferences and discussed with representatives from the poultry vaccine industry. We have developed techniques to analyse IBV replication and genetic stability, as well as host responses to infection, in ex vivo organ cultures. This may reduce the need for chickens in pre-clinical screening of vaccine candidates, in compliance with the principles of the 3Rs.
First Year Of Impact 2021
Sector Agriculture, Food and Drink
Impact Types Societal

 
Description PhD Student Journal Club
Geographic Reach Local/Municipal/Regional 
Policy Influence Type Influenced training of practitioners or researchers
Impact Giulia helped to coordinate the Journal Club bimonthly sessions for al the students at The Pirbright Institute (PhD, Placement and master students). She contributed to paper selection and coordination of the students discussion, and for topic selection for the debate format with preparation of the discussions and coordination of the students debate. The students engaged in the activity so that active discussions and debates generated upon the guided analysis of the paper selected or of the topic provided for the debate. This activity encourage the students to develop a critical point of view and explore new perspective while engaging in the discussion.
 
Description PhD student Journal Club organiser
Geographic Reach Local/Municipal/Regional 
Policy Influence Type Influenced training of practitioners or researchers
Impact Giulia coordinates the Journal Club bimonthly sessions for all the students at The Pirbright Institute (PhD, Placement and master students). She organised round tables on science topics (science media communication, virtual connection and scientific community engagement opportunities) and coordinated the ordinary journal club with paper selection and students discussion. The students engaged in the activity so that active discussions and debates generated upon the guided analysis of the paper selected or of the topic selected for the debate. This activity encourage the students to develop a critical point of view and explore new perspective while engaging in the discussion.
 
Description Training MSc students
Geographic Reach Local/Municipal/Regional 
Policy Influence Type Influenced training of practitioners or researchers
Impact Delivered a new training session to MSc students teaching viral quantification assays. This lead to a greater understanding of laboratory techniques and academic research.
 
Description 21ROMITIGATIONFUND Pirbright Institute
Amount £283,000 (GBP)
Funding ID BB/W510725/1 
Organisation Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 08/2021 
End 03/2022
 
Description SOMAmer technology to diagnose coronavirus infection: veterinary and zoonotic implications
Amount £1 (GBP)
Organisation University of Oxford 
Sector Academic/University
Country United Kingdom
Start 09/2021 
End 09/2025
 
Description Taiwan Partnering Award
Amount £40,700 (GBP)
Funding ID BB/S020624/1 
Organisation Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start  
 
Description Travel Grant awarded to participate in the AVRD conference (cancelled due to COVID)
Amount £1,000 (GBP)
Organisation British Poultry Science 
Sector Private
Country United Kingdom
Start 05/2020 
End 06/2020
 
Description UK International coronavirus network (UK-ICN)
Amount £510,207 (GBP)
Funding ID BB/W003287/1 
Organisation Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 09/2021 
End 09/2025
 
Title Gene expression analysis by qPCR to investigate the host immune response 
Description Evaluation of regulation of gene expression involved in the interferon response during viral infection is investigated by qPCR. Analysis of reference genes and experimental genes expression are compared to normalised gene expression variation and link them to events of up- and down-regulation in tissues collected during animal studies or from in vitro data of infected cells. The reference genes are first selected based on the variables occurring in the study (GeNorm and NormFinder are adopted for the selection) and the experimental genes linked to the interferon analysis are normalised to those basal expression level. The delta-deltaCt comparison is used to infer the fold change in gene expression. 
Type Of Material Technology assay or reagent 
Year Produced 2021 
Provided To Others? Yes  
Impact The analysis of gene expression linked to interferon response has been used for evaluating the effect of viral replication during IBV infection, testing tissues collected during an animal study. Viral loads quantified by qPCR have been correlated to gene expression levels in tissues collected from birds infected with different recombinant IBV thought to have a targeted influence on the immune response. Equally, mock infected birds have been analysed to provide the basal expression data and threshold. The data have been collected and analysed for the manuscript "Recombinant avian infectious bronchitis viruses with targeted modifications in the nsp3 Macrodomain are attenuated in vivo and display morphological distinct phenotypes in vitro" under preparation. 
 
Title Luciferase assay responsive to chMX stimulation for detection of bioactive IFN 
Description A luciferase assay was established for detection of chicken bioactive interferon in biological samples. A plasmid was generated containing the chMX responsive element paired with the luciferase gene. Transfection of DF1 cells with the selected plasmid, paired with a renilla based construct for estimating transfection efficiency allowing data normalisation is conducted to quantify the amount of interferon (IFN) units in the tested sample. Comparison of Renilla and luciferase luminescence values (RLU) detected by a luminometer upon use of a reporter system allows for the relative comparison of IFN quantity in different samples. 
Type Of Material Technology assay or reagent 
Year Produced 2021 
Provided To Others? Yes  
Impact The quantification of bioactive interferon allows for the detection of an innate immune response in the context of viral infections. Specifically, reverse genetics targeting selected genes (nsp3, nsp16, spike) and allowing the generation of recombinant viruses with potential implication in the host interaction have been tested by this method to quantify the impact of the targeted modification in the ability of each rIBV to induce interferon. Notably interferon response is the first line of defence during viral infection. The assay has been tested on in vitro infections conducted in chicken kidney cells. The assay will also be used to evaluate the impact of temperature sensitivity of rIBVs in the context of the IFN immune response. 
 
Title Optimisation of preparation of TOCs from adult chickens 
Description Tracheal organ cultures (TOCs) are prepared from chicken embryos and used to assess growth of avian viruses that are not able to be propagated in cell culture. We have optimised the method of TOCs preparation from 3-week old chickens and are using these to assess viral genetic stability and phenotype in organ cultures that are a similar environment to the site of replication in whole chickens. 
Type Of Material Cell line 
Year Produced 2018 
Provided To Others? No  
Impact We hope that this technique will reduce the number of chickens required for in vivo experiments, in line with the 3Rs, and plan to publish the method in due course. 
 
Description Collaboration with University of Cambridge 
Organisation University of Cambridge
Department Virology
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have performed experiments with SARS-CoV-2 to investigate the host response to infection in vitro.
Collaborator Contribution Our partners have led the research and we have published a paper detailing the results.
Impact Information on the host responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro. Echavarría-Consuegra L, Cook GM, Busnadiego I, Lefèvre C, Keep S, Brown K, Doyle N, Dowgier G, Franaszek K, Moore NA, Siddell SG, Bickerton E, Hale BG, Firth AE, Brierley I, Irigoyen N. Manipulation of the unfolded protein response: A pharmacological strategy against coronavirus infection. PLoS Pathog. 2021 Jun 17;17(6):e1009644. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009644. PMID: 34138976; PMCID: PMC8211288.
Start Year 2020
 
Description Collaboration with University of Oxford and Warwick 
Organisation University of Oxford
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have supplied coronavirus samples and coronavirus expertise to the collaboration.
Collaborator Contribution Our partners have led the research and we have published a paper detailing the results.
Impact Evaluation of imaging technologies to detect coronavirus-infected samples. Shiaelis N, Tometzki A, Peto L, McMahon A, Hepp C, Bickerton E, Favard C, Muriaux D, Andersson M, Oakley S, Vaughan A, Matthews PC, Stoesser N, Crook DW, Kapanidis AN, Robb NC. Virus Detection and Identification in Minutes Using Single-Particle Imaging and Deep Learning. ACS Nano. 2023 Jan 10;17(1):697-710. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.2c10159. Epub 2022 Dec 21. PMID: 36541630; PMCID: PMC9836350.
Start Year 2020
 
Description Collaboration with University of Oxford and Warwick 
Organisation University of Warwick
Department Warwick Medical School
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have supplied coronavirus samples and coronavirus expertise to the collaboration.
Collaborator Contribution Our partners have led the research and we have published a paper detailing the results.
Impact Evaluation of imaging technologies to detect coronavirus-infected samples. Shiaelis N, Tometzki A, Peto L, McMahon A, Hepp C, Bickerton E, Favard C, Muriaux D, Andersson M, Oakley S, Vaughan A, Matthews PC, Stoesser N, Crook DW, Kapanidis AN, Robb NC. Virus Detection and Identification in Minutes Using Single-Particle Imaging and Deep Learning. ACS Nano. 2023 Jan 10;17(1):697-710. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.2c10159. Epub 2022 Dec 21. PMID: 36541630; PMCID: PMC9836350.
Start Year 2020
 
Description Identification of conserved B-cell epitopes of highly pathogenic coronaviruses for broadspectrum immunotherapy and vaccine design. 
Organisation Imperial College London
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have performed experiments to generate preliminary data for a collaborative grant application, contributed to the writing of the grant proposal and responded to reviewers comments.
Collaborator Contribution My collaborators have performed experiments to generate preliminary data for a collaborative grant application, contributed to the writing of the grant proposal and responded to reviewers comments.
Impact Submission of proposal entitled "Identification of conserved B-cell epitopes of highly pathogenic coronaviruses for broadspectrum immunotherapy and vaccine design" to the "One Health Approaches to Accelerate Vaccine Development" call that forms part of the UK government's commitment to Official Development Assistance (ODA) in October 2017.
Start Year 2017
 
Description Identification of conserved B-cell epitopes of highly pathogenic coronaviruses for broadspectrum immunotherapy and vaccine design. 
Organisation University of Kent
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have performed experiments to generate preliminary data for a collaborative grant application, contributed to the writing of the grant proposal and responded to reviewers comments.
Collaborator Contribution My collaborators have performed experiments to generate preliminary data for a collaborative grant application, contributed to the writing of the grant proposal and responded to reviewers comments.
Impact Submission of proposal entitled "Identification of conserved B-cell epitopes of highly pathogenic coronaviruses for broadspectrum immunotherapy and vaccine design" to the "One Health Approaches to Accelerate Vaccine Development" call that forms part of the UK government's commitment to Official Development Assistance (ODA) in October 2017.
Start Year 2017
 
Description Partnering with National Taiwan University 
Organisation National Taiwan University
Country Taiwan, Province of China 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution We have prepared and submitted an application for a BBSRC-Taiwan Partnering Award to study "Assembly of Recombinant Infectious Bronchitis Virus and Determination of Antigenic Sites that Confer Hemagglutination Activity".
Collaborator Contribution The partners conceived the project and got in contact about submitting an application for funding together.
Impact An application has been made for a BBSRC-Taiwan Partnering Award in November 2018.
Start Year 2018
 
Description Ash Manor School challenge week workshop 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Schools
Results and Impact For this event, 60 students were rotating around a series of science workshops as part of their challenge week based on a selected theme of their choice. Giulia and Phoebe contributed together with other people from our Institute in delivering the workshop about microbiology, hence student were actively interested in the topic.
They organised activities that could be performed in small groups such as teaching pupils about the importance of hand hygiene using our UV Equipment, seeing live mosquitoes through a microscope, learning about flu using our Flu Fighters- H&N Selector and trying to take swabs from a model chicken using Flu Fighters- Henrietta the Chicken.
The students were very interested in all the activities and actively participating, and they were asking many questions related to viruses, animal diseases, zoonotic diseases and microbiology in general.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description BSI webinar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I presented a webinar hosted by the British Society for Immunology entitled "BSI Coronavirus webinar: What can we learn from the animal coronaviruses?", which sparked questions and discussions afterwards. I have since been contacted to establish new collaborations with people in the audience.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Centre of excellence for research on avian diseases (CERAD) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I was invited to present my work at the UK-China Centre of excellence for research on avian diseases (CERAD) meeting attended by researchers from UK, China and Thailand. There was lots of discussion about the research and future directions, including potential collaborations.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
 
Description Farnborough College of Technology Career day 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Schools
Results and Impact The aim of this event was to give Y13 students direct access to local potential employers who are prepared to invest in training and developing their employees via recognised apprenticeships, formal additional qualifications or in-house training, together with information on when and how they can apply. Additionally the exhibition was open for all the 3,700 college students to attend throughout the day with their families. Giulia was in charge of The Pirbright Institute stand with various activities for visitors to take part in and she was explaining our science to the students and the general public, career opportunities and training options. During the day working on the stand Giulia could speak with many children and adults about her work at Pirbright and what The Pirbright Institute is, stimulating public interest in research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Inspire Guildford County School Careers Fair 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Schools
Results and Impact Giulia and Isobel represented The Pirbright Institute at the career fair at the Guildford College in a context of many other businesses and University representatives. The aim was to show the range of careers that are possible within a range of industries. For this event Giulia was in charge of the Institute stand and could speak about careers in science and the research carried out at The Pirbright Institute. Students were engaging in our activities for promoting interaction and showed a high level of interest for science and research careers requesting more information.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description International Day of Women and Girls in Science 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact I gave a quote as a STEM ambassador about why I think it is important to make sure women and girls have the same opportunities in STEM. This was shared on social media to celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a UN-led initiative.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description International Women's Day video for social media 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Three team members were interviewed about their careers in science for International Women's Day. The videos were posted on Pirbright's website, Facebook and Twitter to celebrate what we love about working in science.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
 
Description Interview for national newspaper 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interview with a journalist from The Telegraph about coronavirus replication and transmission.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Interview with Associated Press 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interview with a journalist from Associated Press about coronavirus research at The Pirbright Institute.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Interview with BBC Radio Surrey 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interview with journalists from BBC Radio Surrey on the breakfast show about coronavirus research at The Pirbright Institute.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Interview with BuzzFeed News 
Form Of Engagement Activity A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interview with a journalist from BuzzFeed News about coronavirus research at The Pirbright Institute.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description MSc student visit 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact I hosted several MSc students from University of Surrey, discussed avian research with them and demonstrated some laboratory techniques. The students gained an understanding of academic research and laboratory work.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018,2019
 
Description Microbiology Society Annual conference (UK) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Industry/Business
Results and Impact Poster or oral presentation at Microbiology Society annual conference, a major international event. The participants included researchers from many different areas of science. This provides a platform to promote research to a wider audience as well as discuss the key findings with experts in my own field.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019
 
Description Microbiology Society Avian Focus Meeting (UK) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Industry/Business
Results and Impact I gave a 15 minute oral presentation to an audience of around 80 people in 2016 and 2018. The audience consisted of researchers from many different scientific institutions from different areas of avian research. This was a great opportunity to present to experts in this field and gain novel insights into the project and the possible applications of my work.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2016,2018
 
Description Nidovirus symposium 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I presented my work at the Nidovirus Symposium, which is held every three years and brings together researchers from industry and academia from many different countries. I had some interesting discussions with other researchers and built my network.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
 
Description Opening of The Biggs Avian Research Facility 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact We presented our research and spoke to guests attending the opening of the Biggs Avian Research Facility at Pirbright. Guests who attended included politicians and members of the public from the local area, eminent researchers from other institutions, and members of BBSRC. Guests reported that they felt much more informed about the work going on at Pirbright and were impressed by our facilities.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023
 
Description Positive Strand Viruses Conference 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Industry/Business
Results and Impact This was a poster presentation. There were several different poster sessions at the conference allowing a large selection of people to view each poster. The audience included world leaders in my research field and important names from groups all over the world. This gave me the opportunity to discuss my work with other scientists on a one to one basis, leading to generation of new ideas for future experiments and collaborations.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2010,2013,2016,2019
 
Description Presentation at American Society for Virology conference 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Invited to give a keynote talk on "Rational vaccine design for the avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus" at the ASV Satellite Symposium: Viral Pathogenesis and Prevention in Animals, discussed research and future plans with other researches in the field.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Presentation at Global Alliance for Research on Avian Diseases Conference 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact Presentation of my research at the Global Alliance for Research on Avian Diseases Conference in Vietnam to approximately 80 conference participants resulted in discussions about future research directions.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
 
Description Presentation at Microbiology Society annual conference in Belfast 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Presentation of "The canonical stem loop RNA structure of the s2m genetic element is not required for avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus replication in vitro however deletion of the s2m sequence results in a 36-nucleotide insertion" and "Characterising the ion channel inactivating mutations in the E protein of Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV)" during the virology workshops to other research scientists and students. We also presented a poster on "Examination of in vitro cell lines and ex vivo tracheal organ cultures for the study of porcine respiratory coronavirus". Good feedback was received and ideas generated for further research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description Presentation at Nidovirus symposium 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Presentation given on "The canonical stem loop RNA structure of the s2m genetic element in the avian coronavirus Infectious Bronchitis Virus is not required for viral replication in vitro but may play a role during in vivo infection" at the poster session of the The XVth International Nidovirus Symposium. Discussions with other researchers in the coronavirus field resulted in new ideas to take the research forwards.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Presentation at RIVR meetings 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact Presentation of my research at Recently Independent Virology Researchers (RIVR) meetings in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. I discussed my work and future collaborations with other virology researchers working in the UK.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2016,2017,2018,2019,2020
 
Description Presentation to BBSRC Executive Board 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I presented our research to the BBSRC Executive Board when they visited The Pirbright Institute in September 2018 and discussed the impacts of our work..
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
 
Description Presentations at Avian Research Symposium 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact We have presented our research at the Avian Research Symposium organised by the National Avian Resource Facility at the Roslin Institute in 2021 (Rational vaccine design for the avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus) and 2023 (Disruption of the s2m RNA structure in the avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus results in reduced clinical disease during in vivo infection). We have engaged with other researchers to expand our network and discussed future research activities.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021,2023
 
Description Presentations at Microbiology Society focused conference on Avian Infectious Diseases 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact The Microbiology Society supported a focused meeting on avian infectious disease research, bringing together scientists from all over the world to discuss their research. We gave presentations on "Characterisation of the Infectious Bronchitis Virus E Protein for Rational Vaccine Design" and "Rational vaccine design for the avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus", received good feedback on our work and ideas for future research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Presentations at the UK International Coronavirus Network (UK-ICN) AGM 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact We presented research "The Genetic Stability, Replication Kinetics and Cytopathogenicity of Recombinant Avian Coronaviruses with a T16A or an A26F Mutation within the E Protein Is Cell-Type Dependent" and "A temperature sensitive recombinant of avian coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus provides complete protection against homologous challenge" and a poster on "A novel in-cell micro neutralisation assay for the human coronavirus OC-43: Allowing rapid and automated quantification of neutralising effect of antibodies and antiviral compounds" at the annual general meeting of the UK-ICN in Cambridge. We networked with other researchers working in the coronavirus field and discussed future research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description Reverse genetics seminar (University of Surrey) 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact A seminar was given based upon the reverse genetics system of infectious bronchitis virus. The audience was a group of 10 -15 MSc students from University of Surrey. The students were engaged, asked questions about the research and careers in science. We were asked to repeat the seminar for the next year's intake of students.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018
 
Description Surrey County Show 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact The Surrey County Show is an agricultural show in Guildford that is visited by the general public. The Pirbright Institute had a stand with various activities for visitors to take part in and explain our science to a wide audience. Giulia spent a day working on the stand and spoke with many children and adults about her work at Pirbright to change public attitudes and stimulate increased interest in research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
 
Description Teentech 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Schools
Results and Impact The annual Teentech student science event in Guildford aims to encourage teenagers to consider science subjects and science careers. Our stand had considerable interest from the schoolchildren who were very enthusiastic. The event stimulated an increased interest in science and research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2016,2019
 
Description Tthe Microbiology Society Annual Conference 2019 (Belfast) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Delivered oral presentation at the Annual Conference of The Microbiology Society in Belfast.
Title of the presentation: Modification of the ADP-ribose-1"-monophosphatase domain in recombinant infectious bronchitis virus affects viral replication in vitro and attenuates the virus in vivo.
The abstract is included in the meeting report and available online.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/acmi/10.1099/acmi.ac2019.po0387
 
Description organised workshops at Microbiology Society annual conferences 2014 - 2018 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I co-organised virology division workshops on viral evolution and diversity and RNA viruses with colleagues from the virology division. The workshops were held at the annual Microbiology Society conferences in spring each year. Organisation involved selecting abstracts for oral or poster presentation, ordering the presentations and chairing the sessions.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2015,2016,2017,2018