Establishing and maintaining arthropod biological resources of veterinary importance

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IAH possesses unique colonies of both Culicoides biting midges and Ornithodorus soft ticks. These provide individuals of known physiological state and age, at all times of the year and in large numbers, sustaining work on the transmission of diseases of international importance, including bluetongue and African swine fever. We wish to expand these resources to include further vector-species of epidemiological interest to the UK by establishing colonies of mosquitoes, (including UK derived colonies) and potentially hard ticks or large biting flies that may be involved in mechanical transmission of pathogens. Establishing these colonies will include sourcing populations already adapted to laboratory conditions (where available), as well as using field-caught material to produce new lines. The person employed will receive training in producing cell lines from these organisms, as a further resource, and may be involved in selective breeding of the existing colonies.

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