Research

Funding: QS-Wissenschaftsfonds, 29.830 EUR

Project Details:
Infectious diseases pose a serious threat to animal health. There are only two legally required vaccinations in the livestock poultry sector in Germany (Newcastle disease and zoonotic salmonella). In the EU, vaccination against avian influenza was prohibited for many years, as the disease could be controlled by biosecurity and eradication measures. A new legal regulation (VO/EU 2023/361) allows vaccination to be used as part of the control measures. In order to rule out the risks of vaccination, it must be accompanied by close monitoring. According to current data, this will be very costly and may have to be borne proportionately by the livestock owner. In addition to the reduction in animal suffering, a further impact factor is the emotional consequences for the people involved in animal husbandry and care in the event of a complete depopulation of livestock in the event of an animal epidemic. Against this background, our project aims to assess the practical feasibility of vaccination against HPAI in livestock poultry farming. The aim is to record what wishes farmers have regarding the possible implementation of vaccination against HPAI, under what circumstances this can/should happen, what they need for implementation, what support they expect from veterinary medicine and the authorities.The task of this study is therefore to determine, through quantitative and qualitative empirical analyses, which measures are particularly effective against classical avian influenza. What are the prerequisites for successful implementation by the farmers?

Project Details:
The aim of this work is to develop a practical microfluidic chip sperm selection method for large-volume (10-20 ml) initial samples of diluted stallion semen. This method is intended to replace semen preparation by centrifugation and increase fertilisation rates after insemination.

Cooperation Partners:

Niedersächsisches Landgestüt Celle

Funding: Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and German Aerospace Center (DLR), 130.000 EUR

Project Details:
The high-energy cosmic radiation has a decisive influence on all manned space missions. The effect of this radiation on the model organism Trichoplax adhaerens (Placozoa) will be investigated in this project. Placozoans are the most simply organized multicellular animals and can give us crucial clues about the effect of cosmic radiation on humans.

Cooperation Partners:

Patrick Humbert, La Trobe University, Australia

Jens Hauslage, DLR, Köln

Funding: Fritz Ahrberg-Stiftung, 15.000 EUR

Project Details:
The project aims to develop optimized phage formulations through encapsulation and freeze-drying in order to improve the distribution and effectiveness of the phages in minced meat. In addition, bacteriocins are to be integrated into the developed phage formulations as a second minimization strategy in order to exploit possible synergistic effects. Bacteriocins are proteins produced by bacteria that are used to defend against other bacterial strains. Currently, two bacteriocins are approved for use in food in Europe. Since 2017, bacteriocins have been isolated and studied at the Institute for Food Quality and Safety for use against Salmonella, Listeria, and Campylobacter. The effectiveness of the developed formulations will be tested in meat preparations.

Results:

Vorstellung der aktuellen Ergebnisse im Rahmen einer Posterpräsentation auf der 65. Arbeitstagung "Lebensmittelsicherheit und Verbraucherschutz" der DVG in Garmisch-Partenkirchen vom 23.-26.09.2025.

Fritsche, L.P., E. Peh, W.F. Wolkers, O. Berhilevych, M. Plötz, S. Kittler (2025). "Einfluss von Verpackungsmethoden auf die Wirksamkeit von Bakteriophagen in Hühnchen- und Schweinefleisc

Cooperation Partners:

Prof. Dr. Willem Wolk

Funding: Associations, 161.400 EUR

Funding: Gesellschaft für Kynologische Forschung (GFK), 10.000 EUR

Project Details:
Due to the frequent use of antibiotics, there are more and more diseases caused by resistant germs in both human and veterinary medicine. Unfortunately, more and more germs on our dogs' skin are showing this problem, so that skin infections that were previously easy to treat are now difficult to treat. Therefore, alternatives to antibiotics are increasingly being sought. A team led by Dr. Jessica Meißner from the Institute for Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmacy at the Hannover University of Veterinary Medicine Foundation is now checking whether products based on manuka honey or ozone oil can help in the fight against multi-resistant skin germs (especially Staphylococcus pseudintermedius) in dogs.

Project Details:
The monitoring and evaluation of emotions in animals is of increasing interest due to the public awareness on anima, welfare but also because laboratory animals serve as model species for the development of psychological drugs. The reliable evaluation of emotions is still a scientific challenge, as emotions are not only the result of automatic physiological reactions, but also underline cognitive evaluation processes (Kalat & Shiota, 2007). Thus, the emotional perception of a situation can depend on individual personality or experience. In order to be able to assess animal welfare, it is important to develop reliable methods for recording the emotional state of an animal. Although it is possible to determine an animal's condition using physiological measurements (e.g. blood sampling, implants to measure the heart rate), these measures are invasive and do not provide any information about the emotional valence of the condition (an increased heart rate occurs with both negative and positive emotions). An alternative is offered by behavioural tests that can be used to test the personality of animals as well as the emotional cognitive evaluation of a situation. One way of testing cognitive judgement is the ‘Judgement Bias Task’. The animal learns to distinguish between a positive and a less positive stimulus and to react accordingly. They are then presented with an unknown ambivalent stimulus. Their reaction makes it possible to assess whether an animal is ‘optimistic’ (selects as with a positive stimulus) or ‘pessimistic’ (selects as with a positive stimulus). These findings will allow a better assessment of emotions in animals and can later be used to investigate the impact of different housing conditions, environmental enrichment or pharmacological effects on an animal's emotions.

Funding: H. Wilhelm Schaumann Stiftung, 57.600 EUR

Project Details:
Enterococcus cecorum (EC) is an increasingly relevant bacterial pathogen in broiler chickens, and the disease is globally widespread. Affected birds typically exhibit lameness in the second half of the production cycle due to inflammation of the thoracic vertebrae and hip joints. Mortality rates can exceed 10%, and culling rates and medication use increase significantly. EC infections are considered a major cause of the high frequency of antimicrobial treatments in broiler production. Additionally, they represent a significant animal welfare issue, as bone inflammations are highly likely to cause severe pain.

Management practices such as antibiotic therapies or prophylactic use can be problematic, as they promote resistance and contradict antibiotic stewardship principles. Therefore, alternative strategies are urgently needed, including vaccination programs, breeding approaches, management measures in parent stock farms and hatcheries, as well as the use of feed additives. However, scientific evidence confirming the effectiveness of these methods is still lacking.

Studies show that EC can survive in the environment for at least six months and can still be detected in certain areas of poultry house equipment even after cleaning and disinfection. Since only a subset of strains is pathogenic, targeted decontamination of parent stock farms, hatcheries, and broiler facilities could help contain the spread of the pathogen. Effective cleaning and disinfection are essential. In practice, disinfectants such as aldehydes, quaternary ammonium compounds, cresols, oxidative agents, and organic acids are commonly used. Physical methods such as UV irradiation or ozone fumigation are also applied. The effectiveness of these measures depends on factors such as the correct concentration of active substances, application technique, removal of organic residues, and structural conditions of the facility. Deficiencies in these areas can lead to pathogen persistence and subsequent infections.

For other Enterococcus species, reduced sensitivity to chemical disinfectants has been reported for certain strains. However, no corresponding data are currently available for EC. Clinical isolates of Enterococcus faecium from hospitals have also shown decreasing sensitivity to alcohol-based disinfectants.
Research Objectives:

-Investigation of EC sensitivity to various biocides
-Analysis of the effectiveness of UV irradiation as a physical disinfection method

The findings from this study aim to optimize disinfection strategies in poultry farming, reduce antibiotic use, and thereby improve both animal health and welfare.

Funding: H. Wilhelm Schaumann Stiftung, 5.000 EUR

Project Details:
The feeding of farm animals has a big influence on our environment. Due to both, the resources fed and the excreted metabolic products, it is important to understand physiological processes in the metabolism of farm animals. Especially with regard to the "One Health" concept, we have to develop ways to ensure the health of humans and animals, as well as the supply of
food, despite the increasing world population and scarcity of resources, while minimizing the influence on nature.
Due to their ability to recycle phosphorus (P) and their nitrogen (N) utilization by the forestomach microbes, ruminants in particular represent an interesting test group for reducing
N- and P- levels in feed to a minimum. The planned studies should contribute to a better understanding of the adapted metabolic
processes during P- and N-reduced feeding and focus particularly on the regulation of amino acid transport in the liver under stress conditions.

Funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), 427.078 EUR

Project Details:
Therefore, we are particularly interested in this initial host-pathogen interaction that determines the outcome of the disease. In the present project, we will therefore investigate this important initial interaction of Mmm with the primary target cells of the host organism, both in vitro and in vivo, at the molecular level. In particular, we will elucidate the molecular basis of adhesion of the pathogen to the host cell. To this end, we will identify adhesins of Mmm and determine their cellular receptors. We will also study in detail the early response of host epithelial cells to contact with the pathogen. In addition, we will study the antibody response against molecules involved in the early phase of infection. The overall goal of this project is to better understand the molecular basis of the early interaction between pathogen and host. In doing so, we aim to identify target structures that may facilitate the development of new therapeutic tools.

Cooperation Partners:

PD Dr. Robert Kammerer

Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut

Bundesforschungsinstitut für Tiergesundheit

Institut für Immunologie

17493 Greifswald

Dr. Christiane Schnee (seit 12/2024)

Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut

Bundesforschungsinstitut für Tiergesundheit

Institut für molekulare Pathogenese

07743 Jena

Victor Mobegi, Ph.D.

University of Nairobi

Department of Medical Microbiology

Nairobi

Martin Kiogora Mwirigi

Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization

Nairobi

Elise Schieck, Ph.D.

International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi

Dr. Martin Heller (bis 12/2024)

Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut

Bundesforschungsinstitut für Tiergesundheit

Institut für molekulare Pathogenese

07743 Jena