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Pirbight's Plowright building from afar with wild plants in front

15 November 2024

Pirbright welcomes two successful Doctoral Landscape Awards in life and environmental sciences

The Pirbright Institute is celebrating two major doctoral training initiatives funded by the UKRI Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), each offering unique opportunities for the next generation of scientists. These programmes…

Close up of a pipette tip in a well of gel electrophoresis. Blue liquid is visible in the wells.

14 November 2024

Nurturing emerging leaders in science

Two talented Pirbright researchers have been awarded with Strategic Career Development Awards (SCDAs) to advance their research and career trajectories. Dr Rory Fortes de Brito, a Senior Postdoctoral researcher in the Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) Immunology group and Dr Lidia…

Latest news

yellow chick at pirbright in housing

16 November 2018

Bird flu viruses could escape vaccine immunity while increasing potential to infect humans

Research led by The Pirbright Institute has shown mutant H9N2 bird flu viruses isolated from Pakistan are able to escape immune responses and adapt to infect humans. This could result in reduced vaccine efficiency and the possibility of human outbreaks. Published in the journal Emerging Infectious…

influenza virus coloured orange and purple

18 October 2018

H7N9 flu mutation identified that allows immune system escape

Scientists at The Pirbright Institute have identified a key mutation in the H7N9 avian influenza virus which could allow it to escape immune system defences, reducing the effectiveness of vaccines. The research, published in the Journal of Virology, demonstrated that small genetic differences in the…

Duck by water

Single vaccine developed for avian flu and duck enteritis

For the first time, researchers led by Professor Munir Iqbal at The Pirbright Institute have been able to insert protective avian influenza virus genes into the duck enteritis virus (DEV) vaccine by using a method of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing that allows higher rates of gene insertion. This makes the…

White chicken

14 February 2018

Poultry keepers need to be vigilant to combat the spread of bird flu in the UK

The recent H5N6 bird flu outbreak is confined to the south of England, partly due to the introduction of an Avian Influenza Protection Zone in England and Wales including strict biosecurity measures for affected bird keepers. But what is bird flu? Why is it such a threat? And what can we do to stop…

Pandemic threat to humans from common bird flu virus H9N2 better understood

Experiments by researchers at The Pirbright Institute have identified the molecular mechanisms that enable H9N2 viruses - the most common type of avian influenza (bird flu) virus - to infect humans, helping improve risk assessments for its potential to cause pandemic. Although H9N2 viruses are…

Avian influenza virus

28 January 2016

New analysis of the H9N2 strain of bird flu could help prevent veterinary and human pandemics

A new study of a strain of avian influenza virus, which can pose a risk to both poultry and human health, will help guide surveillance efforts and ensure vaccines are more effective; helping prevent serious outbreaks. The H9N2 virus leads to significant losses in poultry production across Asia, but…

28 January 2016

Influenza research reveals previously unknown factor limiting virus host range

A new study by a group including Dr Munir Iqbal, from The Pirbright Institute, has identified a previously unknown factor which works to limit the host range of influenza viruses. The research, recently published in Nature, has revealed that the avian protein ANP32A works as a species barrier…