Viral Persistence
Lead Research Organisation:
The Pirbright Institute
Department Name: UNLISTED
Abstract
There is no single mechanism adopted by viruses to establish a persistent infection, and the propensity for persistence can vary between closely related viral serotypes. Therefore, studying the natural hosts has enormous advantages over model species for dissecting the detailed molecular processes and pathways involved. The suite of biological mechanisms leading to persistence can be complex and the outcome of infection can vary depending on minor variation in the virus, host or indeed other environmental influences. Consequently insights into the entire process of viral pathogenesis leading to persistence is crucial to both identify targets for disease control and in making sure that any interventions are not likely to exacerbate disease. These studies build on the established, integrated and systems approach to animal infection studies that is a unique strength of the work undertaken at Pirbright. The studies in this topic is particularly closely linked to the ‘recognition and control of virus infections’ topic where the host innate and adaptive immune responses have failed to clear an infection.
Marek’s disease virus (MDV) has developed multiple mechanisms for evading clearance by the host for and persisting. Avian hosts have adapted by initiating a balanced immune response that does not cause untoward tissue damage, but restricts virus replication to tolerable levels. Understanding this dynamic equilibrium is challenging, but very important to develop innovative intervention control strategies. African buffalo can become persistently infected with foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) creating a virus reservoir that influences viral evolution and transmission to cattle. Understanding the process of persistence will be an important component of any future eradication programme in Africa and could identify opportunities to control this disease in cattle. Porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) strains are poor inducers of type I interferon (IFN) both in vitro and in vivo. PRRSV antagonises the production of type I IFN by infected cells in order to facilitate viral replication and persistence. Indeed, replication of the virus in porcine alveolar macrophages can be controlled by IFN-a treatment.
Marek’s disease virus (MDV) has developed multiple mechanisms for evading clearance by the host for and persisting. Avian hosts have adapted by initiating a balanced immune response that does not cause untoward tissue damage, but restricts virus replication to tolerable levels. Understanding this dynamic equilibrium is challenging, but very important to develop innovative intervention control strategies. African buffalo can become persistently infected with foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) creating a virus reservoir that influences viral evolution and transmission to cattle. Understanding the process of persistence will be an important component of any future eradication programme in Africa and could identify opportunities to control this disease in cattle. Porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) strains are poor inducers of type I interferon (IFN) both in vitro and in vivo. PRRSV antagonises the production of type I IFN by infected cells in order to facilitate viral replication and persistence. Indeed, replication of the virus in porcine alveolar macrophages can be controlled by IFN-a treatment.
Organisations
- The Pirbright Institute, United Kingdom (Lead Research Organisation)
- University of Lleida, Spain (Collaboration)
- Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (Collaboration)
- University of Guelph, Canada (Collaboration)
- University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom (Collaboration)
- Free University of Berlin, Germany (Collaboration)
- Yangzhou University, China (Collaboration)
- Huvepharma (Collaboration)
- French National Institute of Agricultural Research (Collaboration)
- Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences (Collaboration)
- University of Liverpool, United Kingdom (Collaboration)
- Eco Animal Health Ltd (Collaboration)
- U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA (Collaboration)
- National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) (Collaboration)
- Shandong Agricultural University (Collaboration)
- Leidos (Collaboration)
Publications
Baron MD
(2018)
Recent advances in viral vectors in veterinary vaccinology.
in Current opinion in virology
Bondada M
(2019)
Multifunctional miR-155 Pathway in Avian Oncogenic Virus-Induced Neoplastic Diseases
in Non-Coding RNA
Boodhoo N
(2020)
Glutaminolysis and Glycolysis Are Essential for Optimal Replication of Marek's Disease Virus.
in Journal of virology
Boodhoo N
(2019)
Replication of Marek's Disease Virus Is Dependent on Synthesis of De Novo Fatty Acid and Prostaglandin E2.
in Journal of virology
Boodhoo N
(2020)
De Novo Cholesterol Biosynthesis and Its Trafficking in LAMP-1-Positive Vesicles Are Involved in Replication and Spread of Marek's Disease Virus.
in Journal of virology
Chang P
(2020)
Immune Escape Adaptive Mutations in the H7N9 Avian Influenza Hemagglutinin Protein Increase Virus Replication Fitness and Decrease Pandemic Potential.
in Journal of virology
Chang P
(2019)
Amino Acid Residue 217 in the Hemagglutinin Glycoprotein Is a Key Mediator of Avian Influenza H7N9 Virus Antigenicity
in Journal of Virology
| Description | The key findings from the studies on persistent infections of three viruses viz. Marek's disease virus (MDV) in poultry, porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) in pigs, and foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) in ruminants: 1. MDV latency in tumour cell lines is maintained by epigenetic mechanisms: During latency, MDV expresses a limited set of genes which are kept transcriptionally active with boundaries maintained using specific insulator sequences. We have determined global changes in the methylation of the viral/host promoters by determining the first chicken global DNA methylome of oncogenic virus-transformed cells. 2. CRISPR/Cas9-based in situ gene editing for examining the determinants of MDV persistence: We have developed CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing tools in MDV-transformed cell lines. We demonstrated that the MDV-encoded oncogene Meq is essential for transformation. A CRISPR activation system was established to activate latent viral genes in MDV cell lines and demonstrated that activation of pp38/pp24 expression triggers lytic replication. 3. COX-2-PGE2 pathway in MDV persistence: Activation of COX-2-PGE2 pathway, essential for MDV replication, can modulate both innate and adaptive immunity against MDV replication, influencing latency. We generated significant new knowledge on the role of metabolism in replication and spread of avian alphaherpesviruses in avian cells. We demonstrated in chickens that inhibition of the COX-2 -PGE2 pathway prevented MDV-induced immunosuppression. 4. Examining the role of T cells in resistance/susceptibility to MDV: We demonstrated that IFN-? producing memory T cells correlate with protection against MD, and vaccination increases both effector and memory T cell IFN-? responses in both genetically resistant and susceptible chicken lines. 5. PRRSV non-structural proteins show multiple interactions with host proteins: Using yeast-two-hybrid screens with PRRSV-1 NSP1 and a porcine alveolar macrophage library, we have identified interacting proteins associated with IFN signalling, the NF-?B pathway, ubiquitination, and nuclear transport, suggesting their roles in pathogenesis and persistence of PRRSV. We established a PRRSV reverse genetics system to generate recombinant low and high virulence strains, that will enable functional characterisation of viral proteins in gene-swapping experiments. 6. Follicular dendritic cells in the germinal centre are important in FMDV persistence and immune responses in a mouse model: The importance of FDCs in FMDV persistence was demonstrated as virus decreased significantly when FDC were depleted with recombinant lymphotoxin beta receptor immunoglobulin fusion protein (LTßR-Ig). Moreover, LTß-deficient mice that lacked FDC and normal intact splenic marginal zone, failed to trap and retain FMDV in the germinal centres, failed to generate neutralising antibodies to FMDV and showed impaired FMDV-specific antibody responses. 7. African buffaloes are not a major source of new FMDV variants: We have shown that despite an accumulation of low frequency sequence variants over time, there is no evidence of significant antigenic variation, suggesting that carrier buffalo are unlikely to be a major source of new variants which may infect livestock. We showed that antibody escape does not contribute to persistent infections in buffaloes. Using a combination of transmission experiments, field studies and mathematical modelling, we demonstrated how carrier animals enable FMDV to persist in small buffalo populations. |
| Exploitation Route | 1. MDV immune responses and metabolism: Our studies demonstrating IFN-?-producing T cells as a correlate for protection against MD can be exploited for vaccine development, to assess flock susceptibility and inform interventions for MD control. T cell assays can be used to study responses to other infections and vaccines in chickens. Identification of the COX-2/PGE2 pathway in MD pathogenesis could be explored in developing novel control methods, e.g., COX-2 inhibitor drugs. 2. CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing for studying MDV biology: Development of these technologies will help in better understanding virus-host interactions and development of recombinant vaccines. The identified viral genes critical for reactivation/inhibition of viruses will be useful as targets for development of de novo disease resistance in chickens to avian pathogens. 3. Our PRRSV reverse genetics system was essential in us securing four externally funded projects (three funded by pharmaceutical companies), which aim to produce more effective PRRSV vaccines through genetic modifications. 4. Identification of the role of FDCs in persistence of FMDV in mouse model: These studies will help in the design of vaccines to induce long-term immunity and understand the role of "carrier" animals in the maintenance and spread of infection in wildlife and livestock populations. |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
| Description | The UK-China Centre of Excellence for Research on Avian Diseases (CERAD) was established as a network to work together to help find solutions to the problems with avian diseases in the UK and China. CERAD has significantly grown in terms of numbers of academic institutions joining CERAD (https://www.uk-china-cerad.org/). Various innovative research findings have been used to secure additional joint research funds on areas such as virus pathogenesis, host-virus interactions and virus persistence in diseases such as Marek's disease and avian leukosis. CERAD has won 7 joint grants, published 14 joint research papers, signed 4 joint agreements, organised 5 conferences and supported 9 exchange visits. Translation of the research outputs include the development of improved diagnostics and innovative vaccines against avian diseases. Some of the novel recombinant vaccines against avian diseases are currently being evaluated for commercial use to protect against major avian diseases. The success of the project has been acknowledged when it was shortlisted for the Newton Prize 2019 for China (https://www.newtonfund.ac.uk/news/latest-news/2019-newton-prize-shortlist-announced/). The importance of CERAD was also recently covered by CGTN (https://newseu.cgtn.com/news/2020-01-28/British-and-Chinese-scientists-join-forces-to-fight-avian-diseases-NBCaLdnfCo/index.html). |
| First Year Of Impact | 2015 |
| Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
| Impact Types | Economic |
| Description | Contributing to the chapter on Marek's disease for the OIE Terrestrial Manual |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Implementation circular/rapid advice/letter to e.g. Ministry of Health |
| Impact | The contribution to the Terrestrial Manual on the recent advances in the diagnosis and control of Marek's disease will impact on improved and better control of the disease to reduce losses and improved food security |
| URL | http://www.oie.int/ |
| Description | Organised seminar series on Sequencing, Virus Evolution and Molecular Biology at Pirbright (with Luca Ferretti and Graham Freimanis) |
| Geographic Reach | Local/Municipal/Regional |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Participation in the Management of the Oxford DTP |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Impact | As part of the Management committee of the Oxford-Pirbright-Oxford Brookes-Diamond doctorate Training Partnership, contributed to the success of the DTP in meeting the objectives, recruitment and review |
| URL | http://www.biodtp.ox.ac.uk/ |
| Description | Taught course on introductory bioinformatics to PhD students at Pirbright |
| Geographic Reach | Local/Municipal/Regional |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | BBSRC IAA The Pirbright Institute |
| Amount | £300,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/S506680/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2018 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | CRISPR/Cas system-based molecular diagnostics for avian viral pathogens |
| Amount | £21,263 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2020 |
| End | 03/2020 |
| Description | Collaborative partnership for establish of PhysioMimix™ OOC system, part of Pirbright Institute Flexible Talent Mobility Account |
| Amount | £180,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/S507945/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2020 |
| End | 12/2020 |
| Description | Development of CVI-988 based recombinant vaccine |
| Amount | £240,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Eco Animal Health Ltd |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2019 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | Development of HVT-ND using CRISPR/Cas9 system |
| Amount | £188,317 (GBP) |
| Organisation | HIPRA |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | Spain |
| Start | 05/2022 |
| End | 05/2023 |
| Description | Development of avian herpesvirus vector vaccines for poultry |
| Amount | £432,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | MSD Animal Health |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2021 |
| End | 12/2023 |
| Description | Development of improved HVT based vaccines using CRISPR/Cas9 system |
| Amount | £258,820 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United States |
| Start | 01/2021 |
| End | 12/2022 |
| Description | Development of multivalent HVT vectored vaccines |
| Amount | £15,169 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Vaxxinova |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Start | 05/2022 |
| End | 05/2023 |
| Description | Dissecting the molecular pathways of MDV oncoprotein Meq for understanding pathogenesis and aid vaccine development |
| Amount | £440,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/R007896/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2018 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | EU VetBioNet Transnational Access Fund: Evaluation of the immunogenicity of a bivalent PRRS-Nipah virus vaccine |
| Amount | £61,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | European Commission |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | European Union (EU) |
| Start | 04/2021 |
| End | 07/2021 |
| Description | In vitro evaluation of peptide-based immune checkpoint inhibitors as potential molecular adjuvants for improved PRRS vaccines |
| Amount | £4,921 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2019 |
| End | 03/2020 |
| Description | Market research and technical feasibility of a bivalent porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome / Nipah virus vaccine |
| Amount | £10,880 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 06/2019 |
| End | 03/2020 |
| Description | Microbiology Society Travel Grant |
| Amount | £233 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Microbiology Society |
| Sector | Learned Society |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2018 |
| End | 04/2018 |
| Description | PhD studentship |
| Amount | £91,830 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2019 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Description | Production of HVT vectored VhH construct |
| Amount | £155,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Eco Animal Health Ltd |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2020 |
| End | 06/2020 |
| Description | Recombinant pseudorabies virus as a multivalent vectored vaccine platform for emerging and endemic porcine diseases |
| Amount | £80,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2020 |
| End | 09/2024 |
| Description | Seeding Catalyst Award |
| Amount | £29,683 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | ISCF-TFPSA-Pirbright |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2018 |
| End | 02/2019 |
| Description | The Pirbright Institute PhD Studentship |
| Amount | £80,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Pirbright Institute |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2017 |
| End | 10/2021 |
| Description | UK-China partnership on Global Food Security: Combating avian tumor diseases for sustainable poultry proudction |
| Amount | £382,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/R007632/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2018 |
| End | 03/2020 |
| Title | A ligation and restriction enzyme independent cloning technique: an alternative to conventional methods for cloning hard-to-clone gene segments in the influenza reverse genetics system |
| Description | we developed an easy and efficient ligation and restriction enzyme independent (LREI) cloning method for cloning influenza gene segments into pHW2000 vector. The method involves amplification of megaprimers followed by PCR amplification of megaprimers using a bait plasmid, DpnI digestion and transformation. ligation and restriction enzyme independent (LREI) cloning method represents an alternative strategy for cloning influenza gene segments that have internal restriction sites for the enzymes used in reverse genetics. Further, the problem of genetic instability in bacteria can be alleviated by growing recombinant bacterial cultures at a lower temperature. This technique can be applied to clone any influenza gene segment using universal primers, which would help in the rapid generation of influenza viruses and facilitate influenza research and vaccine development. |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The method will help in the rapid generation of reverse genetic base influenza viruses and facilitate influenza research and vaccine development. |
| URL | https://virologyj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12985-020-01358-2 |
| Title | CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing of avian herpesvirus vectors to develop novel recombinant vaccines |
| Description | Development of recombinant herpesvirus vaccines are usually achieved by classical homologous recombination methods. The advent of new genome editing tools has enabled its application on avian herpesvirus vaccine strains to develop new recombinant vaccines potentially capable of expressing protective antigens from multiple pathogens |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2017 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The major impact will be in the generation of novel vaccines that can simultaneously protect against multiple avian diseases |
| URL | http://www.poultryworld.net/Health/Articles/2016/12/Is-GM-technology-the-future-of-poultry-vaccines-... |
| Title | Developed assays for evaluation of antigen specific memory chicken T cells |
| Description | An in vitro model for generation of effector cells from memory T cells for chicken T cells were developed |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | This method will enable scientists working on poultry vaccines and immune response to pathogens to assess memory T cell responses in chickens. |
| Title | Development of assay for assessing antigen-specific T cell responses in chickens |
| Description | An in vitro assay were developed to generate effector memory T cells from memory T cells (cultured ELISPOT assay for chicken T cells) |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Enables scientists to assess memory T cell responses induced by poultry vaccines |
| Title | Development of chicken NKT cell tetramer |
| Description | Tetramer for detection and quantification of chicken NKT cells are developed and tested. |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | This will lead to identification of a novel chicken lymphocytes which has major role in the control of infectious diseases and tumour in chickens. |
| Title | Generation of cell-free virus using feather follicle stem cells |
| Description | An in vitro model for generation and purification of cell-free virus using feather follicule stem cells |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Cell lines could be used to generate cell free vaccines against Marek's disease virus |
| Title | Generation of feather follicle stem cells |
| Description | Methods for generation and expansion of feather follicle epithelial stem cells are developed within Avian Immunology group. |
| Type Of Material | Cell line |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Feather follicle stem cells can be used to examine Marek's disease virus replication in vitro. |
| Title | Generation of monocyte-derived dendritic cells and analyses of their infection by foot-and-mouth disease virus |
| Description | CD14+ cells were selected. Day 4 monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDC) were generated by positive selection using CD14 magnetic beads and LS columns, followed by differentiation by culturing in the presence of IL-4 and GM-CSF. Both non-cell culture adapted and cell culture adapted FMDV were used in this study. Immuno-fluorescence microscopy (IFM) was used to investigate internalisation of FMDV and immune complexed (IC) FMDV at 1-6 hours post infection (hpi) and also to investigate the uptake pathways utilised by non-cell culture and cell culture adapted FMDV in the presence of different pharmacological inhibitors. Western blot, IFM and quantitative RT-PCR was used to analyse viral replication at 0-6, 8, 16 and 24 hpi. Plaque assays were used to investigate the yields of live virus produced in moDC at 0, 4, 8 and 24 hpi. Flow cytometry was used to investigate the changes in IL-12 and IL-10 secretion following FMDV infection at 2, 4 and 6 hpi. MxCAT ELISA was used to investigate the secretion of IFN at different times post infection. |
| Type Of Material | Cell line |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | These methods were used to generate MODC and characterise their interaction with FMDV. They are currently being incorporated into a manuscript for peer review and provide a workflow to analyse FMDV infections of other dendritic cell types. |
| Title | Lateral flow detection of avian leukosis viruses and Reticuloendotheliosis virus |
| Description | The system for detecting ALV/REV based on CRISPR-Cas13a, a SHERLOCK reaction system consists of specific RPA primers for amplifying target nucleic acid fragments, Cas13a protein, crRNA, and Lateral flow chromatography test strip for visualized display of results. The assay started with pre-amplification of either a DNA or RNA target input. Amplified targets are then converted to RNA via T7 transcription and detected by Cas13-crRNA complexes, which activate and cleave fluorescent RNA reporters based on its collateral cleavage nature. The result can be visualized using colorimetric lateral flow reaction. The test is rapid, sensitive and specific for detection of ALV/REV at 37°C. The product can commercialized with a great clinical application prospects. |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The early identi?cation and removal of virus-shedding birds are essential to reduce the transmission. This rapid, simple-to-use and cost effective on-site diagnostic method will aid the eradication of ALV/REV in the affected area. |
| Title | The establishment of an efficient pipeline for in situ CRISPR editing of the Marek's disease virus (MDV) genome in lymphoma-derived cell lines |
| Description | The lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) derived from MD lymphomas have served as valuable resources to study virus-host molecular interactions in transformed cells. However, detailed investigations into the functional role of different viral and host determinants in these cells have been difficult due to the lack of tools for in situ manipulation of viral/host genomes in MDV-transformed cell lines. Our recent success in efficient CRISPR/Cas9 editing of the MDV genome in LCLs has demonstrated the potential for targeted editing to dissect the regulatory pathways involved in latency, transformation, reactivation and lytic switch. |
| Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Using this approach, we have demonstrated viral genes such as pp38 and MDV-miR-M4 are not essential for maintaining the transformed phenotype. On the other hand, deletion of MDV-encoded oncogene Meq or mutations preventing its interactions resulted in cell death demonstrating the essential role of Meq in transformation. |
| URL | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/10/6/279 |
| Title | FMDV LIMS and webtools |
| Description | The Integrative Biology and Bioinformatics (IBB) group has been supplying state-of-the-art bioinformatics tools to the World Reference Labs for the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus. All tools revolve around a database of genomic sequences and metadata for FMDV samples. Some tools allow members of the lab to enter, process and annotate new data into the database, generating several kinds of reports. Other web-based tools (the "FMDV Toolbox") allow external users to query the database in several ways. Bioinformatics workflows are hosted on the IBB cluster, and have been implemented as REST web services so as to be decoupled from the web interface. The web interface is currently being redeveloped with the help of a specialised company. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2016 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The reports generated by our system are used to inform FMDV policy-makers both within the UK and in the rest of the world. External users can compare their sequences to those contained in the database, and get useful biological insights. |
| URL | https://mallorn.pirbright.ac.uk/FMDVToolbox |
| Title | Genome browser for MDV infected chicken cells |
| Description | The database integrates and makes available the results of the bioinformatics analysis of several experiments involving high-throughput sequencing of chicken cells infected by several viruses (mainly Marek's Disease Virus) generated within the Avian Viral Disease group at the Pirbright Institute. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2015 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The genome browser allows the researchers to meaningfully mine and integrate the large amount of data produced by their experiments, guiding subsequent experimental hypothesis-driven validation in the lab. |
| Title | Method to predict vaccine matching in-silico |
| Description | Every time a novel viral strain emerges, it is essential to know whether existing vaccines are effective against it. Several lab techniques are available in order to do so, the most widespread one arguably being VNT (virus neutralisation test). However VNT is expensive, difficult to implement and not very reproducible due to batch effects. Being able to reliably predict VNT-derived antibody titres with the computer would be a game changer in the field. We have developed an in-silico model based on machine learning that is able to effectively predict VNT outcomes out of sequencing data. We have shown that the method performs well for FMDV and also, apparently, for influenza. |
| Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | We are currently in the process of validating and optimising the method. If preliminary results are confirmed, the method could be put to good use in a number of fields, and become the basis for a more effective policy making when managing and controlling devastating livestock diseases such as FMDV. |
| Title | South-African buffalo FMDV sequences |
| Description | We have sequenced FMDV buffalo samples originated from a EEID project entitled: Persistence of a Highly Contagious Pathogen: Ecological and Evolutionary Mechanisms in Foot-And-Mouth Disease Virus. This project aims to understand why a highly contagious pathogen such as FMDV, which induces a rapid host immunity and depletes the supply of susceptible host, is able to persist in isolated buffalo populations and thus avoid auto-extinction. The centre piece of the project is a cohort study which involves an established FMDV-positive breeding herd of ca. 70 buffalo in a 900-hectare enclosure surrounded by double game fencing housing buffalo in isolation from other herds in the Kruger National Park (South Africa). The entire herd is being monitored for three years (animals are sampled every 2 months (serum, tonsil swabs, probang) to trace FMDV transmission events, allowing us to define FMD infection dynamics across the susceptible calf cohorts and amongst adults. So far, FMDV genomes from 101 samples have been deep sequenced by illumina. Samples from the last year captures are currently being analysed and virus is currently being isolated. The second experiment is an experimental study, which involves a group of naïve buffalo experimentally infected with either a SAT-1, SAT-2 or SAT-3 virus. The infected buffalo were then allowed to mingle with susceptible animals and transmission of FMDV to naïve animals was monitored during the acute infection but also from persistently infected animals. So far, FMDV genomes from 48 samples obtained at days 2, 30 and 160 of the experiment have been deep sequenced. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The samples sequenced come from South Africa, which is an LMIC, While FMDV infection in cattle is very well studied, the mechanisms of persistence in buffalo, which is thought to be the natural reservoir of the infection, are not well understood. Such understanding would be essential to inform better policies to understand and manage FMDV, which is an economically important scourge of cloven hooved animals in LMICs. All the sequences will be made available on the Transboundary Portal which is being developed at Pirbright. |
| Title | Viral assembly pipeline |
| Description | The Integrative Biology and Bioinformatics group has developed a data analysis pipeline to obtain sensitive and robust viral assemblies out of high-throughput sequencing data. In spite of the relatively short genomic length of most viruses, assembling of viral sequences can be challenging due to several reasons, such as: low amount of material in the sample, which might require amplification, introducing biases, and/or generates low-quality sequences; uneven coverage due to low-quality material or the genomic material of the virus being RNA; the viral nucleic acid being almost lost in the background of nucleic acid of the host. Our pipeline overcomes most of those problems, and is even able to detect different viral strains being present together in the same sample. It can also be used on metagenomic environmental samples. |
| Type Of Material | Data analysis technique |
| Year Produced | 2017 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The pipeline is being deployed as the tool of choice for the nascent sequencing facility at Pirbright. It has been used by several groups at Pirbright, and the FMDV World Reference Lab, in order to assemble very different kinds of viruses. |
| Title | Viral variant calling pipeline |
| Description | The Integrative Biology and Bioinformatics group has developed a data analysis pipeline to obtain sensitive and robust variant calling for viral sequences out of high-throughput sequencing data. In spite of the relatively short genomic length of most viruses, calling variant for viral sequences can be challenging due to several reasons, such as: low amount of material in the sample, which might require amplification, introducing biases, and/or generates low-quality sequences; very high genome coverage, which slows down most existing variant callers; the presence of a potentially very high number of different haplotypes for RNA viruses, which is an unusual scenario in variant calling. Our fast and sensitive Bayesian pipeline overcomes most of those problems. |
| Type Of Material | Data analysis technique |
| Year Produced | 2017 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The pipeline is being deployed as the tool of choice for the nascent sequencing facility at Pirbright. It has been used by several groups at Pirbright, and the FMDV World Reference Lab, in order to assemble very different kinds of viruses. |
| Title | Zimbabwe FMDV sequences |
| Description | Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) causes an acute vesicular disease in domestic cloven-hooved animals. However, in the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) clinical disease is rarely observed and following infection virus is persistently carried in the oesophageal-pharyngeal area of the upper respiratory tract. During the 1990s oesophageal-pharyngeal scrapings were collected from free-living African buffalo in multiple herds in six different geographic areas of Zimbabwe. We sequenced over 140 FMD viruses each belonging to one of the Southern African Territories (SAT) serotypes (SAT 1, SAT 2 and SAT 3) from primary bovine thyroid cells. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | This dataset has been generated from samples collected in Zimbabwe, which is a low-income country. Those viral sequences will be essential to help elucidating the nature of persistent FMDV infection in African buffalo, which is supposed to be the main virus reservoir in vivo. As the samples track viral infection and evolution over several years and across a number of different herds in different national parks and conservatories, the dataset will also inform better animal management and conservation. A better understanding of FMDV persistence would also be essential to mitigate the economic burden generated by the disease, which is a scourge of cloven-hoofed animals in LMICs. All the sequences will be made available through the Transboundary Pathogen portal that is being developed at Pirbright. |
| Description | Development of a bivalent PRRS/Nipah virus vaccine |
| Organisation | National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) |
| Country | Thailand |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV and Nipah virus vaccine research |
| Collaborator Contribution | Expertise in genetically engineering PRRSV |
| Impact | Too early. |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Dr Caroline Denesvere |
| Organisation | French National Institute of Agricultural Research |
| Department | INRA Loire Valley Centre |
| Country | France |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Worked together to establish a collaboration on development of feather follicular stem cell lines as a platform for the generation of cell-free vaccine against Marek's disease virus. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided expertise on cell free Marek's disease and microscopic evaluation of cells generating the virus. |
| Impact | Generation of data leading to a successful BBSRC IPA grant application |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Evaluation of a PRRSV-vectored Nipah virus vaccine |
| Organisation | National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) |
| Country | Thailand |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in porcine immunology/vaccinology, inc. PRRSV and Nipah |
| Collaborator Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV reverse genetics |
| Impact | None as yet |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Evaluation of immune checkpoint inhibitors as molecular adjuvants for improved PRRSV vaccines |
| Organisation | Leidos |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV immunology |
| Collaborator Contribution | Patented immune checkpoint inhibitors |
| Impact | No yet |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Finn Frey |
| Organisation | University of Edinburgh |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Worked together to identify the host factors involved in MDV latency |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided chicken gRNA library for screening of MDV cell line |
| Impact | Not yet |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Identification and functional characterisation of host proteins that interact with non-structural proteins of PRRSV |
| Organisation | University of Liverpool |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV |
| Collaborator Contribution | Expertise in viral-host protein interactions |
| Impact | Not yet |
| Start Year | 2017 |
| Description | Identification of sows with antibodies broadly neutralising PRRSV |
| Organisation | University of Lleida |
| Country | Spain |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV immunology |
| Collaborator Contribution | Access to large numbers of sows routinely vaccinated and exposed to PRRSV |
| Impact | Not yet |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Mick Watson |
| Organisation | University of Edinburgh |
| Department | The Roslin Institute |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Provide samples for host-virus interaction study of MDV |
| Collaborator Contribution | Data analysis of RNA-seq on CRISPR/Cas9 edited MDV cell lines. |
| Impact | One publication from this collaboration: Zhang Y, Tang N, Luo J, Teng M, Moffat K, Shen Z, Watson M, Nair V#, Yao Y#. Marek's disease virus-encoded miR-155 ortholog critical for the induction of lymphomas is not essential for the proliferation of transformed cell lines. J Virol. 2019 Jun 12. pii: JVI.00713-19. doi: 10.1128/JVI.00713-19. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Next-generation PRRSV vaccines |
| Organisation | Eco Animal Health Ltd |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Know how in terms of genetically manipulating PRRSV and evaluating PRRSV vaccines. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Financial contribution and know how in terms of developing a commercial vaccine. |
| Impact | Too early. |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Next-generation PRRSV vaccines |
| Organisation | Huvepharma |
| Country | Bulgaria |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Expertise in PRRSV virology and immunology |
| Collaborator Contribution | Funding |
| Impact | Too early, project ongoing. |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Professor Aijian Qin & Kun Qian |
| Organisation | Yangzhou University |
| Department | Faculty of Veterinary Medicine |
| Country | China |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Provided knowledge, reagent and information on ALV research |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided samples and reagent for MDV and ALV research |
| Impact | 5 publications have been generated: 1. Zhao W, Wu Z, Yao Y, Qian K. The Isolation and Molecular Characterization of an Astrovirus from "Yellow" Chickens, China. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 27 October 2020 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2020.581862. 2. Yang F, Feng C, Yao Y, Qin A, Shao H and Qian K. Antiviral effect of baicalin on Marek's disease virus in CEF cells. BMC Veterinary Research. 2020, 16:371 3. Zhou X, Wang L, Shen A, Shen X, Xu M, Qian K, Shao H, Yao Y, Nair V, Ye J, Qin A. Detection of ALV p27 in cloacal swabs and virus isolation medium by sELISA. BMC Vet Res. 2019 Oct 30;15 (1):383. doi: 10.1186/s12917-019-2150-z. 4. Qian K, Tian X, Shao H, Ye J, Yao Y, Nair V, Qin A. Identification of novel B-cell epitope in gp85 of subgroup J avian leukosis virus and its application in diagnosis of disease. BMC Veterinary Research. 2018 Sep 26;14(1):295. doi: 10.1186/s12917-018-1622-x. 5. Qian K, Cheng X, Zhang D, Shao H, Yao Y, Nair V, Qin A. Antiviral effect of lithium chloride on replication of avian leukosis virus subgroup J in cell culture. Arch Virol. 2018 Jan 11. doi: 10.1007/s00705-017-3692-7. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Professor Benedikt Kaufer |
| Organisation | Free University of Berlin |
| Country | Germany |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Providing knowledge and methodologies. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Providing reagents and methodologies to perform experiments. |
| Impact | Two publications from this collaboration: Gurung A, Kamble N, Kaufer BB, Pathan A, Shahriar Behboudi. Association of Marek's Disease induced immunosuppression with activation of a novel regulatory T cells in chickens, PLoS Pathogens, 2017, 13 (12), e1006745. Boodhoo N, Kamble N, Kaufer BB, Shahriar Behboudi. Replication of Marek's disease virus is dependent on de novo synthesis of fatty acid and Prostaglandin E2. J Virol. 2019 Apr 10 |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Professor Jim Kaufman |
| Organisation | University of Edinburgh |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Provided information on CD4 T cell epitopes derived from Marek's disease virus |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided knowledge and information on assessing peptide binding to chicken MHC molecules |
| Impact | Generation of data leading to understanding correlate of protection against Marek's disease virus. |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Professor Luo |
| Organisation | Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences |
| Country | China |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Provided knowledge, reagent and information on MDV research |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided samples and reagent for MDV research |
| Impact | 6 publications have been generated: 1. Sun A, Yang S, Luo J,Teng M, Xu Y, Wang R, Zhu X, Zheng L, Wu Y, Yao Y, Nair V, Zhang G, Zhuang G. UL28 and UL33 homologs of Marek's disease virus terminase complex involved in the regulation of cleavage and packaging of viral DNA are indispensable for replication in cultured cells. Veterinary Research. 2021, 52:20. 10.1186/s13567-021-00901-5 2. Zhu Z, Teng M, Li H, Zheng L, Liu J, Yao Y, Nair V, Zhang G, Luo J. Virus-encoded miR-155 ortholog in Marek's disease virus promotes cell proliferation via suppressing apoptosis by targeting tumor suppressor WWOX. Veterinary Microbiology. 7 November 2020, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetmic.2020.108919 3. Zhu Z, Teng M, Li H, Zheng L, Liu J, Chai S, Yao Y, Nair V, Zhang G, Luo J. Marek's disease virus (Gallid alphaherpesvirus 2, GaHV-2)-encoded miR-M2-5p simultaneously promotes cell proliferation and suppresses apoptosis through RBM24 and MYOD1-mediated signaling pathways. Frontiers in Microbiology. 03 November 2020 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.596422 4. Luo J, Teng M, Zai X, Tang N, Zhang Y, Mandviwala A, Reddy VRAP, Baigent S, Yao Y, Nair V. Efficient Mutagenesis of Marek's Disease Virus-Encoded microRNAs Using a CRISPR/Cas9-Based Gene Editing System. Viruses. 2020 Apr 20;12(4): E466. doi: 10.3390/v12040466. 5. Zhang Y, Tang N, Luo J, Teng M, Moffat K, Shen Z, Watson M, Nair V#, Yao Y#. Marek's disease virus-encoded miR-155 ortholog critical for the induction of lymphomas is not essential for the proliferation of transformed cell lines. J Virol. 2019 Jun 12. pii: JVI.00713-19. doi: 10.1128/JVI.00713-19. 6. Zhang Y, Luo J, Tang N, Teng M, Reddy VRAP, Moffat K, Shen Z, Nair V#, Yao Y#. Targeted Editing of the pp38 Gene in Marek's Disease Virus-Transformed Cell Lines Using CRISPR/Cas9 System. Viruses. 2019 Apr 26;11(5). pii: E391. doi: 10.3390/v11050391. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Professor Shayan Sharif, University of Guelph, Canada |
| Organisation | University of Guelph |
| Department | Department of Pathobiology |
| Country | Canada |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Collaboration between my team and Professor Sharif lead to new finding in Avian immunology, specifically in understanding the effects of nutrients on antigen presenting cells and T cells of chicken. We took the lead in studying the effects of some nutrients (Vitamin D) on the function of chicken T cells, performed most of the experiments in our laboratory. Meanwhile, we participated in studying the effects of Vitamin D on antigen presenting cells of chicken by performing some key experiments because we had access to some specific reagents (monoclonal antibodies) recognizing molecules expressed on chicken antigen presenting cells. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Professor Sharif team took the lead in studying the effects of Vitamin D on antigen presenting cells of chicken, and contributed to experimental plan for studying the effects on chicken T cells. |
| Impact | Two publications in 2015 and 2016: 1. Nitish Boodhoo, Shayan Sharif, Shahriar Behboudi. 1a,25(OH)2 Vitamin D3 Modulates Avian T Lymphocyte Functions without Inducing CTL Unresponsiveness. PLoS One. 2016 Feb 24;11(2):e0150134 2. Bahram Shojadoost, Shahriar Behboudi, Villanueva AI, Jennifer Brisbin, Ali Ashkar, Shayan Sharif. Vitamin D3 modulates the function of chicken macrophages. Res. Vet. Sci. 2015 June, 100: 45-51 |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Professor Ziqiang Cheng |
| Organisation | Shandong Agricultural University |
| Country | China |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Provided knowledge and information on ALV research |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided samples and reagent for ALV research |
| Impact | $4 publication have been generated: 1. Pang, Y., Zhou, D., Xue, J., Zhou, J., Zhang, Y., Zheng, G., Yuan, S., Yao, Y. and Cheng, Z. Interplay between CTHRC1 and the SU protein of avian leukosis virus subgroup J (ALV-J) facilitates viral replication. Virus Research. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.virusres.2019.02.014 2. Zhu, M., Zhou, J., Ma, X., Li, G., He, S., Tang, H., Yao, Y. and Cheng, Z. CCCH-type zinc finger antiviral protein is specifically overexpressed in spleen in response to subgroup J avian leukosis virus infection in chicken. Research in Veterinary Science. 2019. 123: 65-70. 3. Zhou J, Zhao GL, Wang XM, Du XS, Su S, Li CG, Nair V, Yao YX, Cheng ZQ. Synergistic Viral Replication of Marek's Disease Virus and Avian Leukosis Virus Subgroup J is Responsible for the Enhanced Pathogenicity in the Superinfection of Chickens. Viruses. 2018 May 18;10(5). pii: E271. doi: 10.3390/v10050271. 4. Zhou D, Xue J, He S, Du X, Zhou J, Li C, Huang L, Nair V, Yao Y, Cheng Z. Reticuloendotheliosis virus and avian leukosis virus subgroup J synergistically increase the accumulation of exosomal miRNAs. Retrovirology. 2018 Jul 3;15(1):45. doi: 10.1186/s12977-018-0427-0. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Re-annotation of Marek's Disease Virus |
| Organisation | U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA |
| Department | Beltsville Agricultural Research Center |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We are using bioinformatics analysis of high-throughput sequencing data in order to provide a better annotation of the genome of Marek's Disease Virus |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners are sharing their extensive expertise of the genomics of MDV, and performing experimental validations |
| Impact | No output yet |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Yulong Gao |
| Organisation | Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences |
| Department | Harbin Veterinary Research Institute (HVRI) |
| Country | China |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Provided knowledge, reagent and information on ALV research |
| Collaborator Contribution | Provided samples and reagent for MDV and ALV research |
| Impact | Two publications have been generated: 1. Li K, Liu Y, Xu Z, Zhang Y, Yao Y, Nair V, Liu C, Zhang Y, Gao Y, Qi X, Cui H, Gao L, Wang X. Prevention of Avian Retrovirus Infection in Chickens Using CRISPR-Cas9 Delivered by Marek's Disease Virus. Molecular Therapy - Nucleic Acids 2020 Sep 4; 21:343-353. doi: 10.1016/j.omtn.2020.06.009. 2. Ren C, Xie R, Yao Y, Yu M, Chang F, Xing L, Zhang Y, Liu Y, Wang S, Farooque M, Wang Y, Qi X, Liu C, Zhang Y, Cui H, Li K, Gao L, Pan Q, Nair V, Wang X, Gao Y. MiR-125b Suppression Inhibits Apoptosis and Negatively Regulates Sema4D in Avian Leukosis Virus-Transformed Cells. Viruses. 2019 Aug 7;11(8). pii: E728. doi: 10.3390/v11080728. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | Poster presentation: International Pig Veterinary Symposium and International PRRS Symposium, Chongqing, PR China |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Luke Johnson (PhD student) gave a poster presentation on his studies on the interaction of macrophages and dendritic cells with PRRSV of differing virulence. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | AN INTERVIEW WITH PROFESSOR VENUGOPAL NAIR |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Professor Venugopal Nair is a Research Group Leader at The Pirbright Institute, a visiting Professor of Avian Virology at the Department of Zoology, and a Jenner Investigator at the Jenner Institute, University of Oxford. He is also a member of the Microbiology Society, and in this interview, he tells us more about his research into viral diseases of livestock. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://microbiologysociety.org/membership/meet-our-members/focus-area-viruses/an-interview-with-pro... |
| Description | Ash Manor school challenge week science workshops |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Discussion of research activities with school children and the school reported increased interests in the related subject. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Ash Manor school challenge week science workshops |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Provide information on research activity at The Pirbright Institute and informing on pathogens infecting farmed animals. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Avian influenza viruses in Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka: investigating genotype to phenotype (antigenicity, virulence, host-range). Webinar on 28th March 2021. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presented talk by Munir iqbal describing ongoing research outcomes. We identified genetic determined that modules avian influenza H5 and H9 antigenicity virulence and transmission fitness in different host species. The role of identified markers that change the virus binding to host cells and impact on virus-host interaction leading to mild or severe disease manifestation in chickens and mammalian species (humans). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Avian influenza: tackling large numbers of outbreaks this winter in the UK |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Nearly two years on, the COVID-19 pandemic is still dominating the news and continues to cause concern for populations across the globe. However, UK poultry and wild bird populations are currently facing their own health threat. We are not the only ones that have faced lockdowns because of spreading viruses, UK poultry and captive birds have also faced a similar situation to protect them from avian influenza. Scientists at The Pirbright Institute are working to increase understanding of how genetic changes in influenza A viruses can impact disease spread, host responses to infection and the pathology associated with the disease. What is the avian influenza virus? Avian influenza viruses are Influenza A viruses that circulate and transmit amongst birds. The disease is what we commonly know as 'bird flu'. Influenza A viruses can infect a range of hosts, including humans and two subtypes H1N1 and H3N2 circulate as seasonal flu each winter in the UK. Avian influenza viruses are different to those that can infect humans in that they cannot easily infect humans and must change and adapt to do so. Aquatic birds are a natural reservoir for avian influenza viruses, these birds typically experience fewer clinical symptoms but can spread disease to domestic birds, particularly in the migratory season, between October and March. Avian influenza viruses are categorised as either highly pathogenic (HPAI) or low pathogenic (LPAI) and this categorisation is linked to the severity of disease in chickens. HPAI has a high mortality rate which can be up to 100%, other symptoms can include swelling of the head, death of cells in the comb and wattle, red discolouration of legs and feet and diarrhoea. HPAI causes disease in more organs than just those in the respiratory or gastrointestinal tracts like LPAI, which mostly presents as respiratory symptoms such as a snick (like a sneeze), a rattle in the chest (known as rales) and discharge from the eyes and nose. What is causing bird flu outbreaks in domestic birds now? We are currently in the normal migratory season of wild birds. In the spring and summer months, these birds spend their time breeding and raising their young in North-eastern Asia where they mix with other bird species which enables virus transmission and mutation. Then, when they migrate for the autumn and winter months, they shed virus in their faeces along the way. One of the migratory paths is across Northern Europe and this includes the UK. This year, in the UK, the first avian influenza outbreak was on 15 October and was discovered in captive aquatic birds. To date (17 December 2021) there have been 50 outbreaks in England, 1 in Wales and 2 in Scotland, this has resulted in over half a million birds being destroyed to control the spread of disease. Are there more outbreaks this year compared to other years? The number of outbreaks this year has been the most extensive ever. There have been over 50 outbreaks in the UK, compared to 26 outbreaks last year. Although it is hard to pin down the reason for this high number, we know it is not linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. The UK's response to the spread of avian influenza has been rapid, and from 29 November birds were required to be housed inside with additional biosecurity measures put in place such as foot dips and disinfecting clothing. Testing and surveillance of wild birds have shown that there is a high prevalence of the virus in these birds currently, and this is contributing to the spread of disease to farm and domestic bird populations. A more detailed look at the genetic make-up of these viruses shows that they are different to those from previous years. This is predicted to be as a result of the virus infecting multiple birds across a range of species, and this provides the perfect opportunity for the virus to evolve. Analysis of these genetic changes does not raise any alarm bells for increased transmission to humans, but they are likely impacting the spread and severity of disease in birds. What should we do if we find a dead bird or are concerned about bird health? If the public finds dead waterfowl birds they are encouraged not to touch them but to report them to Defra using the appropriate phone number that can be found on the website, also any other wild birds found dead in numbers of five or greater should be reported. What is Pirbright doing to tackle this virus? Researchers at Pirbright are attempting to enhance the control and detection of avian influenza in poultry populations as well as extend our basic knowledge about the virus in avian and mammalian hosts. The research groups led by Professor Munir Iqbal and Dr Holy Shelton are investigating how avian influenza virus strains originated from wild birds can rapidly adapt to cause disease outbreaks in poultry and gain the potential to infect humans. In addition, Professor Munir Iqbal is developing improved poultry vaccines that prevent virus replication and spread. These vaccines are particularly useful in countries where avian influenza is regularly found in the domestic poultry and the control and prevention of spread isn't easy, such as in the UK. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.pirbright.ac.uk/news/2021/12/avian-influenza-tackling-large-numbers-outbreaks-winter-uk |
| Description | Big Bang Fair |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This is a South of England Showground in which students from schools and their parents participated which lead to discussion and interest in both school children and their parents. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://nearme.thebigbangfair.co.uk/view/?eve_id=1956 |
| Description | Big Bang Fair |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | The Big Bang Near Me is a programme of regional and local Big Bang Fairs that take place all across the UK. Together with The Big Bang UK Young Scientists & Engineers Fair and The Big Bang Competition, it forms part of the wider Big Bang programme, bringing science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) to life for young people |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://nearme.thebigbangfair.co.uk/about/ |
| Description | Big Bang SE 26-27/06/2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Bishop David Brown careers fair 21/11/2019 |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | CABI_Research activity of Avian Immunology Group at The Pirbright Institute |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Release of research activity within Avian Immunology group at The Pirbright Institute |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Chaired the Poultry Disease group meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Poultry Disease group is a forum of veterinary practitioners to discuss the advances in poultry diseases that could be translated from research labs to the farms |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Conor Haydon participated in the STEM Day - Speed interviews and Careers Day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | STEM day engagement and careers |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | DB Winston Churchill School Careers event |
| 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 | School careers event for a Secondary School - 1500 children ages 11 to 16 years |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Diamond open day |
| 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 | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Over 300 people visited our stand at the open day, in which we described the importance of our work for food security and public health. Children from all ages were involved and learned about viruses and played with the huge virus particle that we had produced. One of the major impact was that we described to several people why we work on some viruses that we do not have them in the UK, and the importance of the work for the UK and UK economy and public health was explained. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | http://www.diamond.ac.uk/Public/VisitUs.html |
| Description | EUFMD 2016 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | During the EuFMDV conference taking place from 26 to 28 October 2016, Paolo Ribeca gave a talk on "VIBAsys and FMDV-Tools: Practical resources for FMDV sequence analysis". The conference, organised by the EU, gathers most of the important actors in FMD control. The talk explained how the new resources being developed by the Integrative Biology and Bioinformatics on behalf of the FMDV World Reference Lab can be useful to the community |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Howard of Effingham STEAM fair 01/04/2019 |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Inauguration of the UK-China Centre of Excellence for Research on Avian Diseases (CERAD) and Symposium on Recent Advances in Avian Disease Research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Inauguration of the UK-China Centre of Excellence for Research on Avian Diseases (CERAD) and Symposium on Recent Advances in Avian Disease Research. This was held in Binzhou, Shandong province in China in 2015 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Innovate Guildford 23/03/2019 |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Interview by CGTN |
| 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 | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Increased profile of both Institute and The UK-China Centre of Excellence for Research on Avian Diseases (CERAD) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://newseu.cgtn.com/news/2020-01-28/British-and-Chinese-scientists-join-forces-to-fight-avian-di... |
| Description | Invitation to give keynote talk on 'Control of avian diseases: Challenges and opportunities' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Gave the Keynote talk on 'Control of avian diseases: Challenges and opportunities' at this International Symposium organized with an aim to gather international virology experts from both human and veterinary fields to share research experience, update findings and contribute their expertise through presentation and interactive discussion. The topics will cover a wide range of virology research common in both human and animal aspects. In addition, technological platforms such as vaccine development, and novel assays will be emphasized and addressed. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | http://www.biotec.or.th/virus-symposium2018/index.php |
| Description | Invitation to talk at the Vaccine Symposium "Vaccines at different levels of complexity from subunit to whole cell formulations" jointly organised by the Centre of Genomic Regulation (CRG), Radboud UMC and MSD Animal Health, with the support from the MycoSynVac project |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Gave a talk and participated in the discussion on the challenges and research opportunities for innovation in poultry disease control |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | http://www.crg.eu/ |
| Description | Invited oral presentation at 18th National Conference for Pig Disease Prevention and Eradication, Wuhan, China |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited oral presentation: 'Trying to hit a moving target: Novel approaches to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus vaccine development', 18th National Conference for Pig Disease Prevention and Eradication, Wuhan, China |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Invited seminar at INRAE, France |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited seminar to present our recent and ongoing PRRSV research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Invited talk at World Vaccine Congress, Washington DC, USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Discussed the potential for structural vaccinology to advance livestock vaccine development including examples of FMDV, bRSV and PRRSV |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Invited talk at the National Institute for Animal Biotechnology, Hyderabad on 3rd Jan 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Participants were engaged in the recent advances in biotechnology, challenges and opportunities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Invited to talk at the International Conference on Building Human and Animal Health Capacities organised by the Jordan University of Science and Technology |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Participated in the discussion and talked on 'The recent advances in vaccination-based control of poultry diseases'. The need for increased awareness of the pathogen diversity in the design of vaccines and the opportunities from advances in vaccine technologies were discussed |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | http://www.just.edu.jo/conferences/bhahc/Pages/default.aspx |
| Description | Keynote talk at the World Veterinary Poultry Association meeting |
| 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 the keynote talk on 'Avian tumour viruses: their contribution to our understanding of cancer' at the World Veterinary Poultry Association XXth Congress in Edinburgh |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | http://www.wvpac2017.com/ |
| Description | MDV conference Tours 2016 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | During the 11th International Symposium on Marek's Disease and Avian Herpesviruses, which took place from 6 to 9 July 2016, Paolo Ribeca gave a talk on "Attenuation of MDV: an RNA-seq based perspective". |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Microbiology Society Annual Meeting, Belfast, 8-11 April 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Talk describing research to date - the molecular mechanism by which the Npro protein of classical swine fever virus inhibits dsRNA-induced apoptosis in infected host cells. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Miyazaki University Symposium - Oral presentation 03/12/2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Oral presentation title: The N-terminal autoprotease of classical swine fever virus. Stimulating increased interest in science and research at The Pirbright Institute |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | NA PRRS Symposium & Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease - Oral and poster presentations |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation title: Identification of host proteins that interact with non-structural proteins-1a and -1ß of PRRSV-1 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Organised the 3rd UK-China CERAD meeting in Guildford, UK in July 2017 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The 3rd UK-China CERAD meeting helped to bring together professional from both countries to identify challenges and exploit the opportunities for improved control of poultry diseases and increasing food security. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | http://www.uk-china-cerad.org/ |
| Description | Organising and giving Keynote talk at the GARAD meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Global Alliance of Poultry industry professional and academia to discuss about the advances in control strategies of diseases |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | http://Garad.org |
| Description | Poster by Nick on the sequencing of Zimbabwe FMDV |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Nick Knowles presented a poster at the 2018 Europic (the meeting of the European Study Group on the Molecular Biology of Picornaviruses) on "Complete Genome Sequence Analysis of Over 140 Foot-and-mouth Disease Viruses Isolated From Free-living African Buffalo (Syncerus Caffer) in Zimbabwe" on behalf of Jemma Wadsworth, Bruce Bolt, Luca Ferretti, Euan C. Anderson, Ashley Gray, Paolo Ribeca, and himself. The sequencing was funded by the Transboundary Pathogens portal project awarded to Pirbright. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Poster presentation: European Veterinary Immunology Workshop, Utrecht, The Netherlands |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Luke Johnson (PhD student) gave a poster presentation on his studies on the interaction of macrophages and dendritic cells with PRRSV of differing virulence. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Presentation on the effects on oncogenic virus infection at the Veterinarian's Forum, Namakkal, India on 29 Dec 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The purpose of the engagement was to update the practicing poultry veterinarians on the problems with oncogenic virus diseases and methods of control. The meeting attended by nearly 100 veterinarians was very informative and ended with a long discussion on the challenges and innovations |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Researchers at Pirbright investigate the emergence of new bird flu viruses with the potential to infect people |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Following the news brief of our research outcomes for the general public and media was published on The Pirbright Institute and widely distributed through social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin. Pirbright scientists have discovered that infection with two strains of avian flu can lead to the emergence of a new virus strain with the potential to jump from birds to humans. Human cases of avian influenza are extremely rare but can occur if a person comes into very close contact with an infected or dead bird. The study shows that avian influenza virus strains H9N2 and H7N9 can share genetic information to create an H9N9 strain with the potential to cause more severe disease in poultry and pose a threat to human health. Avian influenza, also known as 'bird flu', is a type of influenza that spreads among birds. The UK faces a seasonal increase in the risk of avian influenza outbreaks which are associated with the migration patterns of wild birds. Avian influenza is found across the globe, and in countries where multiple strains circulate it is important to monitor the emergence of new strains. Low virulence H9N2 and H7N9 circulate in poultry in Asia but do not cause severe disease. However, they are known to swap genetic information which can result in the emergence of an H9N9 strain, which can cause severe disease. In collaboration with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), researchers at Pirbright discovered that the H9N9 strain was able to multiply significantly better in poultry cells, indicating the potential to cause more severe disease. They also discovered that it had a higher replication rate in human cells and could bind to these cells better than H9N2. The H9N9 strain can infect and transmit between ferrets highlighting the potential to cause disease in humans. The study, published in the Journal of Virology, shows that strains already circulating in poultry populations can exchange genetic material, leading to the creation of new strains. This increases the risk of the virus jumping from avian hosts to humans and other mammals. The study concludes that H7N9 and H9N2 viruses circulating in the same regions pose a pandemic threat, which demonstrates the need for constant monitoring for the emergence of new virus strains. Professor Munir Iqbal, Head of the Avian Influenza Group at Pirbright said: "This is the first study to show that infection with circulating H9N2 and H7N9 influenza viruses could create new virus strains such as H9N9 that cause more disease in poultry and pose a greater risk to human health. If a host is infected with two different strains, there is always a chance that they will swap genetic material to create a new strain. When this happens, it could lead to many outcomes, for example, the virus becoming more or less able to cause disease in a host, or a virus acquiring the ability to jump between hosts. This leads to viruses that primarily cause disease in animals having the ability to infect humans, which is what we have observed in this study. More research is needed to determine which avian flu viruses could combine and pose a threat to poultry and human health." This study was supported by grants funded by the UK Research and Innovation Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council under Newton Fund UK-China-Philippines-Thailand Swine and Poultry Research Initiative and Zoonoses and Emerging Livestock Systems (ZELS) with grants from FCDO and Dstl. The work was also funded by the GCRF One Health Poultry Hub and Defra (UK, including the Devolved Administrations of Scotland and Wales). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.pirbright.ac.uk/news/2022/01/researchers-pirbright-investigate-emergence-new-bird-flu-vi... |
| Description | School Year 9 STEM Networking Event, 2018 |
| 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 | School Year 9 STEM Networking Event, 11th May, 2018 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | School visit (Tilingborne) |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | School visit (Woking) |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Science Festival (Cheltenham) |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Sue Baigent participated in the Teen Tech event on 22nd Jan 2019 on General Science engagement |
| 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 | A General Science event |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Sue Baigent participated in the Winston Churchill Careers Fair on 7th Nov 2018 |
| 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 | Careers fair |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Surrey Open day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Described the research activity of the Pirbright Institute for students from school, graduate and postgraduate students, and provided information on research facilities in the institute. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | https://www.surrey.ac.uk/opendays/vet |
| Description | Talk by Nick on the sequencing of Zimbabwe FMDV |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Nick Knowles gave a talk at the 2018 Open Session of EuFMD (European commission for the control of foot-and-mouth disease ) on "Complete Genome Sequence Analysis of Over 140 Foot-and-mouth Disease Viruses Isolated From Free-living African Buffalo (Syncerus Caffer) in Zimbabwe" on behalf of Jemma Wadsworth, Bruce Bolt, Luca Ferretti, Euan C. Anderson, Ashley Gray, Paolo Ribeca, and himself. The sequencing was funded by the Transboundary Pathogens portal project awarded to Pirbright. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | The Microbiology Society Annual Conference, Belfast - Poster presentation 08-11/04/2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Poster title: Identification of host proteins that interact with non-structural proteins-1a and -1ß of PRRSV-1 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | The Microbiology Society Annual Conference, Birmingham, 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The Microbiology Society Annual Conference, Birmingham, 2018 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | The rise and fall of antigenic mutations: A path to the persistence of avian influenza viruses. The Pirbright Institute Research Update Seminar Series. 27th April 2021. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A seminar at the Pirbright Institute Research Update Seminar Series. 27th April 2021. The research outcomes were discussed detailing how the avian influenza viruses (H9 subtype) evolve under vaccine immune pressure to sustain their fitness in poultry. Described the evolutionary genetic markers that significantly change the virus antigenicity which ultimately reduce the effectiveness of poultry vaccines against avian influenza viruses affecting poultry and huamns. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | UK-India bioinformatics workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | On February 9 2018 Pirbright organised a "UK-India bioinformatics workshop" in order to foster ties between Indian and UK bioinformaticians working in the field of livestock and crop research. Paolo Ribeca gave a talk on "Bioinformatics and sequencing at Pirbright". |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | University of Liverpool Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Poster Day - poster presentation 27/03/2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Poster title: Identification of host proteins that interact with non-structural proteins-1a and -1ß of PRRSV-1 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | University of Liverpool IGH Day, 16th November 2017 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | University of Liverpool IGH Day, 16th November 2017 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | University of Surrey School of Veterinary Medicine Open Day |
| 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 | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of work conducted at The Pirbright Institute |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016,2017 |
| Description | University of Surrey's Widening Participation and Outreach Summer Schools for Biosciences and Veterinary Science 24/07/2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | V Nair invited to talk on 'Cell type- and disease stage-specific interactions of Marek's disease virus & the host' at the International Symposium on Marek's disease and avain herpesiviruses at Yangzhou, China during 29th July to 2nd Aug 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Most recent updates in the field of avian herpesvirus research was discussed and active engagements for future collaborations discussed |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | V Nair was invited to talk a the Poultry Health Workshop and Conference on 19th-20th Nov, 2018 in Kathmandu, Nepal |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | more than 100 stakeholders from different sectors of the Poultry industry and academia attended the meeting. There was engagement from the different sectors for initiating a combined approach for finding solutions |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | http://www.cmdn.org. |
| Description | Vet School Open Day |
| 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 | Schools |
| Results and Impact | University of Surrey School of Veterinary Medicine Open Day - introduced The Pirbright Institute and the research we conduct to prospective students and parents. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Vet Times |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Information on research activity of Avian Immunology group at the Pirbright Institute |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Why vaccines matter in the fight against zoonotic diseases |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | A news story was published to increase the awareness of Zoonotic diseases and their impact on public health, food security, the economy and the environment. This was publicised at The Pirbright Institute webpage and One Health Poultry Health webpage and distributed wildly on social media including Facebook, Twitter, In Share. On World Zoonoses Day, Pirbright's Professor Munir Iqbal and Dr Joshua Sealy consider 600 years of developing technology to fight infectious diseases: The history of human and animal immunisation against infectious disease begins with the Chinese practice of variolation in the fifteenth century. Here, infectious material was taken from one patient and inoculated into a non-infected patient to initiate a mild but protective infection. Roughly 200 years later, Edward Jenner transformed the field of immunology by developing the world's first vaccine which involved immunising patients against smallpox using the closely related cowpox. Fast-forward another 200 years and the application of vaccines had transformed. On 6 July 1885, now celebrated as World Zoonoses Day, Louis Pasteur successfully administered the first vaccine against rabies - and within decades myriad other diseases had also been tackled effectively, including diphtheria, tetanus, anthrax, cholera, plague, typhoid, tuberculosis, measles, mumps, rubella, and polio. Many of these pathogens had been infecting humans for years, and continue to do so where vaccines are not deployed. Now, in the 21st century, vaccine research is undergoing another seismic shift. In 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19), emerged in humans which is believed to have originated in animals (known as zoonoses). It has since developed into the devastating COVID-19 pandemic and in doing so it triggered an urgent need to develop vaccines to control a virus that represents a growing problem at the human-animal interface. Pathogen evolution: Broadly speaking, humans have a naïve immune system to the many pathogens that exclusively circulate within animal reservoirs, including livestock. Most pathogens have evolved to infect specific animal species, which means that a significant barrier exists that prevents animal pathogens from causing disease in humans. However, a portion of these pathogens, including influenza viruses and coronaviruses, have the capacity to evolve such that they can overcome these barriers and be successful, especially as there is no prior immunity in the human population. This extraordinary ability to evolve also means that these pathogens have the potential to overcome vaccines. The application of vaccines and vaccine technology must progress to meet the challenge of zoonotic viruses. Vaccine variety: An impressive diversity of vaccine technologies is currently employed or in development to combat pathogens circulating in humans and animals. A vaccine needs to be effective at eliminating or reducing disease, but the diversity of pathogens means vaccines sometimes need to be equally diverse and must cater to specific challenges. Traditional inactivated pathogen vaccines are generated by 'killing' a pathogen so that it can be safely administered for immunisation. Subunit vaccines are vaccines that comprise only a fragment of the target pathogen which can be administered to generate an immune response exclusively to that fragment. Both technologies elicit protective antibody responses and have been successful for an exceptionally long time against a variety of pathogens. However, an antibody response does not provide sufficient protection against all pathogens that continually change their shapes to evade vaccines. Live attenuated vaccines typically use infectious pathogens that are modified to prevent them from causing disease but can still trigger an immune response similar to their naturally occurring counterparts. These vaccines are useful because as well as an antibody response, they can induce a cellular immune response, which targets conserved parts of the pathogens that remain the same across different strains. This means live attenuated vaccines are more effective at protecting against mutations that could allow the pathogen to escape vaccine immunity and they provide better protection against multiple pathogen strains. New vaccine technology: Viral vector vaccines are vaccines that comprise the 'backbone' of a virus that doesn't cause disease in the host animal, which expresses a piece of the target pathogen that induces an immune response. Most licensed viral vector vaccines are in use in animals, with only a single vectored vaccine (against the Ebola virus) being licensed for humans prior to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Viral vector vaccines evoke a strong immune response that is specific to the pathogen, making it effective and long-lasting. DNA/RNA vaccines contain genetic material that codes for a piece of a pathogen, which the host cells process to elicit an immune response. Several mRNA vaccines are in use against SARS-CoV-2 and they are cost-effective, safe, and produced using chemicals synthetically and not from cell culture systems. As such, we now have the capacity to carefully select the target of our vaccines and the nature of the desired immune response. The importance of vaccines was brought into focus once again with the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic - and, going forward, the need for our growing arsenal of vaccines will only increase with the needs of humanity. Nutrition: As the human population increases so do its need for nutrition. A major source of human nutrition is animal-derived; thus, the population of farmed animals increases. Wild habitats are encroached upon to provide for the increasing population of farmed animals, and this facilitates interaction between farmed and wild animals. Consequently, we develop a tractable route for zoonotic diseases to enter the human population. Finally, the need for human nutrition is also met through the acquisition of wild animals. There is evidence to suggest that the West African Ebola virus epidemic was preceded by the capture of wild animals for human consumption. Likewise, SARS-CoV-2 is believed to have originated in wild animals. Zoonotic diseases clearly have far-reaching impacts. Humans and animals directly suffer pathogen-related sickness and death, and global economies incur significant losses. The current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is a clear example of this - while avian influenza and several other emerging and re-emerging viruses carrying zoonotic infection potential circulating in farmed and wild birds are a constant reminder that the next pandemic could be around the corner. Written by Professor Munir Iqbal and Dr Joshua Sealy, members of the Avian Influenza Virus group at Pirbright. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.pirbright.ac.uk/news/2021/07/why-vaccines-matter-fight-against-zoonotic-diseases |
| Description | Woking High School 17/09/2019 |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Woking School Careers 27/06/2019 |
| 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 | Stimulating increased interest in science and research |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | YS Winston Churchill School Careers event |
| 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 | School careers event for a Secondary School - 1500 children ages 11 to 16 years |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | poster presentation, University of Liverpool IGH Day, 15th October 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | poster presentation, University of Liverpool IGH Day, 15th October 2018 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |