Researchers Explore Microbes to Benefit Animal, Human Health

Researchers are exploring animal microbiome to benefit both animals–including horses–and humans.
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By current estimates, the human body contains 10 times more bacterial cells than human cells. Acting in ways both beneficial and harmful, this complex ecosystem of microorganisms–collectively called the microbiome–lives on the surface of the skin and in the gut and urogenital tract where it influences digestion, allergies, and a multitude of diseases. At the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet), researchers are exploring the microbiome of animals in order to benefit both animal and human health.

Penn Vet’s new Center for Host Microbial Interactions is designed to facilitate collaborative projects that leverage genomics to study the intersection of microbes and disease. In doing so, researchers will gain insight into how bacteria, parasites, viruses, and other organisms interact with their animal and human hosts in ways that either maintain health or lead to disease. The center is currently funding five pilot projects. Each year, the Center will invite researchers to submit proposals for funding. In addition to these pilots, the Center provides ongoing support and training for Penn Vet faculty and their labs to carry out analyses of the complex datasets generated by genomic approaches.

“We strongly believe this innovative approach to health and disease will provide new insights into animal and human health and will build on the One Health concept, linking veterinary medicine, human medicine, and environmental science, in a novel and impactful way,” said Joan C. Hendricks, VMD, PhD, the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

The five pilot projects, including one specific to horses, are each led by Penn Vet faculty. Projects will investigate canine atopic dermatitis as a model for human dermatology; digestion, productivity, and health in dairy cows; maternal stress and its impact on neurological health of offspring; stem cell transformation and colorectal cancer; and preoperative antibiotics and the equine gut microbiome

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