Summary of Research
I am predominantly interested in the analysis of diseases of veterinary and medical importance. Two long term foci of interest have been enterobacteriaecae (Verocytotoxic and antibiotic resistant Escherichia coli and Salmonellae) in both bovine and human hosts, and the analysis of the spread of foot and mouth disease. However, more recently a greater focus has been clinical research work and as such I work closely with clinical colleagues on various veterinary diseases (e.g. tuberculosis, wildlife pathogens, mastitis) as well as general aspects of animal health (e.g. equine reproduction and laminitis, feline cardiology). In addition, I am also focussing on wildlife zoonoses and in particular the role of carnivores as sentinels for disease, and part of this stems from a long standing interest in analysing patterns of disease as well as general population dynamics.
I am undertaking a DEFRA funded project that is looking at a proof of principle concept – can carnivores act as sentinels for disease in their prey. The idea behind this concept is that carnivores act as a “bio-accumulator” for the disease in prey, and therefore pick up the presence of disease (be it viral, bacterial or protozoan) that is circulating at a lower level further down the food chain. While the laboratory results are ongoing and very preliminary the indications are that indeed this concept may work. While we have chosen representative diseases (Leptospira, Q fever & E. cuniculi), these results have potentially important consequences for surveillance of disease. Targeting the carnivores / scavenger that are culled as part of pest control programmes may be a cost-effective measure to detect other diseases of much greater importance to human and animal health concerns.
I co-supervised a PhD student who looked at the temporal trends of E. coli in Scotland and other countries. I intend to carry on this work and look in more detail at the various patterns of infection within and between countries, as well as expanding the work into other bacteria of concern – namely Salmonella and Campylobacter.