Project Leaders:   
Robert W.E. Hancock, Lorne Babiuk

Involved Institution:   
University of British Columbia, Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO)

Technology Applications:   
New treatments and prevention strategies for both human and animal infections

Research Funding Program:   
Competition II

Pathogenomics uses genomic approaches to study microbial pathogens and how they interact with their hosts. Mucosal immunity is the defence system to prevent infectious disease agents from invading the respiratory, digestive, and reproductive tracts. This project will study pathogen:host interactions in several hosts, including humans, chickens and cattle and thus straddles the fields of agriculture and health.

Infectious diseases are responsible for a third of all deaths worldwide as well as being the largest cause of loss of productivity in our society. Furthermore, they are a major problem in the livestock industry, costing billions of dollars every year. The treatment of such infections is becoming more difficult with the advent of antimicrobial resistance. Genomic approaches are arguably the best methods for devising strategies to overcome the serious problems imposed by infectious diseases.
The researchers will examine how the pathogen and host influence the expression of genes in each other, leading to a better understanding of pathogenesis. This broad understanding of mucosal immunity will contribute to new and effective strategies for improving human and animal health. The project is co-led by researchers at UBC and at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO). The Pathogenomics project is building on existing and evolving genomic information in the public databases from other studies. The current approach to genomic analysis is to sequence a single strain of an important organism, followed by an intensive set of expression studies. This is a powerful, information-rich procedure that gives a detailed picture for the organisms sequenced but provides a patchy picture for overall understanding.

This project is taking an alternative approach by investigating the ways pathogens influence gene expression in host cells and how the host influences pathogen expression during infection. This will permit a broader study of the process of pathogenesis. Additionally, learning what happens in the host should lead to novel methods of diagnosing and treating infections.

The point of contact for infection is often the mucous membranes lining the respiratory, digestive, and reproductive tracts. A broad array of defenses work at these body surfaces to prevent the attachment and invasion of infectious disease agents but very little is known about these mechanisms of immunity. This project is using genomic tools to further the understanding of pathogen: host interactions at these surfaces. By investigating mucosal immunity in a wide range of hosts, including humans, chickens, and cattle, researchers will determine the general mechanisms as well as the specific details of immunity in these hosts.