Various food borne pathogens do not only affect the wellbeing of poultry animals, but they may also have impacts on the human health. A few of such pathogens that are actively studied in our lab include different strains of clostridium perfringens (CP) and campylobacter bacteria. CP bacteria may induce pathogenesis in poultry by affecting the intestinal tract, such that lesions occur due to necrotic enteritis (NE), increasing the risk of mortality in flocks. Moreover, campylobacter is notorious for causing human intestinal illness as a result of bacterial shed from poultry animals, known to innately carry a large population of them intestinally. The research in our lab focuses on controlling NE using preventative measures, such as probiotics, to supress CP bacteria in the poultry gut system due to the probiotics’ natural ability to boost the immune system and replace antibiotics in poultry feed to eventually combat bacterial resistance. Further research in our lab also aims at optimizing vaccines against campylobacter to lower the bacteria population in poultry to ultimately decrease the risk of human infection with the pathogen.
