Research Interests

 

The overall goal of our past and present research activities is to understand cellular and molecular mechanisms governing the interaction between the gastrointestinal tract and the immune response. Interactions between the immune response and the gastrointestinal tract may occur at several levels, three of which have become the focus of our investigations:

• Development of the gut-associated immune system (GALT) in omnivorous birds: influences of gastrointestinal development, bacterial colonization, and nutrition.

• Immune-related functions of the intestinal epithelial cell (IEC)

• Development of tolerance or response following intestinal (oral or rectal) intake of antigen.

 

 

More recently, consequent to increasing concern of animal welfare in husbandry practice of livestock, we have initiated an investigation into physiological manifestations of husbandry-related tress in domestic animals, using the chicken as a model.

 

In the context of animal welfare and issues of public health, we are becoming aware of the role of animals in the wild as they serve as natural reservoirs for an abundance of parasites, some of which present health hazards. The eco-immunology of wild animals is gradually becoming a focus of interest, and as experts in immunology, we are interested in analyzing wild-life immune responsiveness that allows co-existence with parasites in the absence of any clear clinical manifestation. Towards this end, we have begun studying the eco-immunology of gerbils, as representatives of native wildlife in Israel.

 

Updated research interests may be accessed via the Group's Research Gate site.