Intervention Strategies to Prevent and Control Enteric Diseases of Poultry

Objective 1. Characterize the intestinal virome associated with poultry enteric diseases, including assessing the intestinal microbiome of poultry for the presence of novel enteric pathogens, and developing molecular tools to study the epidemiology, ecology, and evolution of enteric pathogens. Objective 2. Investigate the role of the poultry gut microbiome in promoting overall health and performance gains, including defining the interactions between the gut microbiome and the host immune system that contribute to enteric diseases and performance problems. Objective 3. Develop vaccine platforms that will lead to highly efficacious vaccines that have been rationally designed to control enteric diseases of poultry, including developing vaccines targeting specific enteric pathogens early during the poultry production cycle.