DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVE STRATEGY FOR JOHNE�S DISEASE CONTROL IN DAIRY COWS

Johne's disease is a wasting disease characterized by chronic granulomatous enteritis caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). The disease affects ruminant animals and is an economically important problem for dairy farmers. MAP is highly infectious and difficult to control in the dairy herd environment. One potential alternative is to use bacteriophages (phages) because they present one of the most promising new opportunities 1) to treat MAP infection in dairy cows and reduce bacterial shedding, 2) for prophylaxis in newborn calves to prevent MAP infection, and 3) to control and prevent MAP transmission in herds by biologically suppressing pathogenic bacterial contamination in the farm setting (soil, water, milk).Specific Aims of this project are:1. To identify lytic phages againstMycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis isolates of Johne's Disease2. To characterize isolated MAP-phages and design broad-range phage cocktails for therapeutic application in dairy cows.