Macrophage Biology and Disease Susceptibility in Poultry

家禽是世界上动物蛋白的最大来源。肉和蛋的可持续生产需要保护禽类免受各种病原体的侵袭。目前的一些方法，包括使用抗生素，正在变得不那么有效，或者因为对人类健康的危害而被禁止。我们的项目结合了两种相关的方法来克服鸟类的一些健康问题，通过使用遗传学或使用正常控制它们免疫的天然蛋白质来启动它们的免疫系统。巨噬细胞是大型白细胞，是抵御病原体的第一道防线，也控制着后来获得的反应，这些反应也是由成功的疫苗诱导的。我们的项目是基于一些关于巨噬细胞生物学在鸟类中的控制方式的专利发现。一方面，我们认为鸟类中有许多天然突变会损害它们的免疫系统，而这些突变在传统的育种策略中并没有被挑选出来。我们的目标是开发一种简单的方法，可以检测巨噬细胞识别和应对一系列不同感染的能力，并表明这种方法可以用于培育具有更高抗病能力的鸟类。另一方面，我们已经确定了一种名为CSF-1的蛋白质，它控制着鸟类中巨噬细胞的数量。我们将测试这种蛋白质诱导免疫系统生长和发育变化的能力，并测试它可以提高先天疾病抵抗力以及现有和未来疫苗的效力的可能性。

Poultry are the largest source of animal protein world-wide. Sustainable production of meat and eggs requires the protection of the birds against a wide range of pathogens. Some of the current methods, including the use of antibiotics, are becoming less effective or have been banned because of hazards to human health. Our project combines two related approaches to overcoming some of the health issues of birds, by priming their immune systems either through the use of genetics or administration of natural proteins that normal control their immunity. Macrophages are large white blood cells that are first line of defence against pathogens, and also control the later acquired responses that are also induced by successful vaccines. Our project is based upon a number of proprietary discoveries about the way that macrophage biology is controlled in birds. On the one hand, we believe that there are many natural mutations in birds that compromise their immune systems and which have not been selected out in conventional breeding strategies. We aim to develop a simple assay that can detect the ability of macrophage to recognise and respond to a diverse set of infections, and show that the assay could be used to breed birds with improved disease resistance. On the other hand, we have identified a protein called CSF-1 which controls the numbers of macrophages in birds. We will test the ability of this protein to induce changes in growth and development of the immune system, and test the possibility that it could improve both innate disease resistance and the efficacy of existing and future vaccines.