Dr Stew Burgess is the Head of the Vaccines and Diagnostics Department at the Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh. He also leads the sheep scab research group, which focuses on developing novel tools for the control of sheep scab, caused by skin infestation with the sheep scab mite, Psoroptes ovis.
Keith is a research scientist a the Moredun Research Institute with particular interests in moelecular immunology and immunogenetics with a focus on genes and proteins in livesitck populations controlling recognition and the response to infection.
Francesca is a research scientist at the Moredun Research Institute, where she currently provides veterinary pathology expertise for Moredun research projects covering a number of bacterial, parasitological and viral diseases of sheep and catttle.
David is a senior principal scientist at the Moredun Research Institute and his current research interests include: understanding the mechanisms by which chlamydial pathogens cause disease and the interaction between host and pathogen; identifying and characterising the components that can be used in the control of chlamydial infections through genomic, bioinformatic, molecular and proteomic approaches; and development of improved control strategies for Ovine Chlamydiosis, including improved vaccines, vaccine delivery systems and diagnostic tools.
David is a principal scientist at the Moredun Institute, and has a longstanding interest in retroviral pathogenesis and his current research focusses on understanding the pathogenesis of ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma and the development of diagnostic tests for controlling disease.
Andrew is a research leader in cell and molecular sciences at the James Hutton Institute. His current research interests include the production of novel diagnostics and vaccine candidates using plants, bacteria and nanotechnology; ciruclar bioeconomy, revalorization of waste streams and development of new biotechnologies; and involvement of nuclear domains and proteins in plant responses to virus infections and environmental cues.
Frank Katzer is a molecular parasitologist at the Moredun Institute working on protozoan parasites of veterinary and public health importance.
Naomi Fox is aquantatitive ecologist in the Disease Systems Team within Animal and Veterinary Sciences at SRUC. Her main research interests include biotic and abiotic drivers of parastite transmission, approaches to modelling disease systeams and impacts of climate change on disease risk. Naomi is also an associate at Biomathematics and Statistics Scotland (BioSS).
Policies implemented in order to control Foot and Mouth Disease, such as large-scale culling of healthy animals, were often controversial. Other infections have the potential to cause similar problems.
SEFARI scientists, in collaboration with other research partners, provide evidence which informs the Scottish Government about the economic consequences of animal diseases. Our multi-disciplinary approach uses a mathematical and economic model to explore the winners and losers of Johne’s disease in the Scottish dairy herd. Our results indicate the extent to which both farmers of dairy herds infected with Johne’s and milk consumers, lose out as a result of the disease, while farmers of uninfected herds benefit.