Category Archives: Animal Diseases

Africa / Animal Diseases / CBPP / Disease Control / ILRI / Launch / North America / Research / USA / Vaccines

US National Science Foundation’s BREAD funds Craig Venter and ILRI to battle cattle pneumonia in Africa

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Dinner with philanthropist Bill Gates at the home of genome-czar J Craig Venter in La Jolla, California, in 2008 (photo by jurvetson on Flickr). ‘Gates asked the most astute and detailed questions about microbiology’, JCVI reports, and said, ‘DNA is the most interesting software there is.’ The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Bill & Melinda Gates … Continue reading →

Animal Diseases / Biotechnology / Diagnostics / Disease Control / Drylands / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Environment / Epidemiology / Event / Human Health / ILRI / Kenya / Research / RVF / Southern Africa / USA / Zoonotic Diseases

Could Rift Valley fever be a weapon of mass destruction? An insidious insect-animal-people infection loop explored

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The Fifth Plague: Livestock Disease, woodcut by Gustave Doré, 1866 (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons). Anthrax, bird flu , Ebola, HIV-AIDS, H1N1, H5N1, influenza, Rift Valley fever, SARS: What are the disease links between people, animals and environments? And what are we doing to protect ourselves against the next outbreak of a deadly infectious disease? … Continue reading →

Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Animal Production / Livestock

Elevage en régions chaudes

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L’agriculture – et plus particulièrement les productions animales – sont depuis quelques années au coeur des préoccupations mondiales, si l’on en juge par les nombreux rapports produits par diverses institutions internationales. Les productions animales au Sud se trouvent ainsi dans une situation paradoxale : elles doivent faire face à une évolution importante de la demande … Continue reading →

Africa / Animal Diseases / Australia / BecA / Biotechnology / Cattle / CBPP / Disease Control / Goats / ILRI / PPR / Sheep / Small Ruminants / Vaccines

Australia steps up support for research in Africa to reduce the continent’s heavy livestock disease burden

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ILRI scientist Joerg Jores (right) tells German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who visited the ILRI-BecA labs in July 2011, about his livestock disease research (photo credit: ILRI/Njoroge). ‘Owning large livestock is like money in the bank for African farmers, but major diseases significantly threaten their future. ‘Among these are [peste des petits ruminants], a viral disease … Continue reading →

A4NH / Agri-Health / Animal Diseases / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Event report / Human Health / ILRI / Livestock / Research / Zoonotic Diseases

Livestock and human health – directions for ILRI

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As part of a session on ‘livestock and human health’ at the recent ‘LiveSTOCK Exchange’ event, Brian Perry interviewed a panel of ILRI staff on future research in this area as part of the new CGIAR Research Program (CRP4) on Agriculture for Improved Nutrition and Health. Topics addressed by Delia Grace include the topical and … Continue reading →

Africa / Animal Breeding / Animal Diseases / Disease Control / East Africa / Epidemiology / Ethiopia / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Livestock / Poultry / Project / Research

Tackling poultry diseases in Ethiopia

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Developing countries such as Ethiopia have many indigenous chicken varieties which are well adapted to local environments as they are excellent foragers, better able to avoid predator attacks and demonstrate better immunity to common diseases. However, due to relatively low genetic potential and poor levels of husbandry, most of these indigenous chicken breeds grow slowly … Continue reading →

ASF / CBPP / Directorate / Event report / ILRI / Presentation / Research / Staff

Livestock research for development in a complex, messy world: Carlos Seré reflects on a decade of work for ILRI

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ILRI former director general Carlos Seré at an ILRI ‘liveSTOCK Exchange’ event held in Nov 2011 on ILRI’s campus in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to reflect on the ‘Seré legacy’ and ways forward for the institute under ILRI’s new director general, Jimmy Smith (photo credit: ILRI/Zerihun Sewunet). On 9 and 10 November 2011, the ILRI Board of … Continue reading →

Agriculture / Animal Breeding / Animal Diseases / Animal Production / Biodiversity / Biotechnology / Ethiopia / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Livestock / Sheep / Small Ruminants

Researching trypanotolerance in indigenous cattle breeds of Ethiopia

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Between 15 and 17 November 2011, scientists, experts and development practitioners from the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, universities and non-governmental and international organizations gathered in Addis Ababa to share research results on trypanotolerance in indigenous local cattle breeds in Ethiopia (Sheko, Abigar, Horro and Gurage) and experiences with community-based sheep breeding. The Sheko breed got … Continue reading →

A4NH / Agri-Health / Animal Diseases / Animal Production / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / Food Safety / Human Health / ILRI / Livestock / Report / Research / Zoonotic Diseases

Agriculture-associated diseases research at ILRI: Food, farming and human health

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For the November 2011 ‘liveSTOCK Exchange’ event at ILRI, Delia Grace, Bernard Bett, Eric Fèvre and John McDermott prepared a series of issue briefs on livestock and human health … Agricultural innovation has allowed massive expansion of people and their animals. Yet as the world population passed 7 billion in October 2011, more than one … Continue reading →