CBHEPA 2011 Student Programs Alert
Please click here for information on the Canadian Broiler Hatching Egg Producers’ Association student programs, including:
CPRC Scholarship Program
The CPRC promotes succession in our poultry research community with its scholarship program.
Specific program objectives are:
The CPRC offers a Postgraduate Scholarship Supplement. The Supplement is $7,500 per year. To be eligible, a student must be studying (or planning to study) some aspect of poultry science and must also hold a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) scholarship at the Masters (eligible for one year) or Doctoral level (eligible for up to two years). Details of the program including eligibility criteria and application procedures can be found on the NSERC website.
In order to attract students from a wider pool, CPRC will now also accept applications from non-NSERC scholars. Applications to the CPRC Postgraduate Scholarship, also set at $7,500 per year, will be assessed using the same criteria as the Supplement above, but applicants will not be required to hold a NSERC scholarship. To be considered for the scholarship, please submit the following to CPRC:
Applications to either the Scholarship or the Supplement are due May 1. Only one Scholarship or Supplement will be awarded each year.
July 2011 After reviewing many excellent applications, the CPRC Board voted to award the 2011 scholarship to Megan Rose at the University of Ottawa. Megan has attained a strong academic standing and has received several awards. She co-authored a journal article in 2009 with her M.Sc. supervisor on the protein constituents of the eggshell and has made a number of presentations, both refereed and non-refereed, at European and Canadian poultry conferences. She is involved with the university community as a laboratory teaching assistant and is active in various volunteer activities. Megan wants to become a leading poultry research scientist.
Megan started a M.Sc. program in 2008 under the supervision of Dr. Max Hincke in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine. She looked at eggshell proteins associated with antimicrobial activity. Her work suggests that components of the cuticle layer of the eggshell have significant antimicrobial properties, which may have important implications for the industry as much of the cuticle is removed during egg washing. Before completing her M.Sc. program, Megan transferred directly to a Ph.D. Her current research is looking at the possibility of exploiting the antimicrobial activity of proteins known as histones. These are the proteins around which DNA coils during the formation of chromosomes. Preliminary work has shown that histones have potent antimicrobial activity. The objective of Megan’s research will be to optimize histone purification from blood and test them for bactericidal activity. If the histones test positive and enough can be recovered, they will be assessed as antimicrobial feed supplements. If successful, this research may lead to value-added products from chicken blood and provide a potential alternative to currently used antibiotics.
Megan has already made significant contributions to her research program and displays great potential to mature into a scientist of excellent caliber – the kind of scientist we want in poultry science to help ensure the future success of our industry.
June 2010 The 2010 scholarship supplement was awarded to Kathleen Vail, University of Alberta. Kathleen started her MSc program in September 2009 under supervision of Dr. Lynn McMullen at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutritional Science at the University of Alberta. Her project is investigating physiological responses of Listeria monocytogenes to environmental conditions (oxygen level, temperature, osmolarity, pH) commonly experienced during meat processing. Research reported in the literature indicates that many bacteria, including Listeria, change from normal cell morphology to a filamentous form under sub-optimal growing conditions. Kathleen’s hypothesis is that L. monocytogenes will survive common meat processing conditions and can persist in filamentous form on foodstuffs under cold storage conditions. Some currently used microbiological testing methods (such as plate counting) are less able to detect the filamentous form of the bacterium. If Kathleen’s hypothesis is correct, it may be that the levels of viable L. monocytogenes present on prepared foods are being underestimated. These results would be of significant consequence to the food industry, especially “ready-to-eat” meat products that are not cooked by the end consumer. For example, processors might be prompted to adjust their microbiological testing methods and/or avoid conditions that promote filamentous Listeria.
September 2009 The 2009 scholarship supplement was awarded to Bushansingh (Shyam) Baurhoo at McGill University. Shyam is investigating the effect of mannanoligosaccharides (MOS) and lignin on broiler chicken performance, especially in the absence of dietary antimicrobials. MOS are complex sugars derived from yeast that have been shown to have prebiotic effects – that is, they may support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the chicken’s gut. Lignin is a co-product of the paper industry that may also be of benefit. This work directly relates to CPRC’s priority of finding alternatives to commonly used antimicrobials. Shyam’s PhD research project is very ambitious. He will be looking at effects on nutrient metabolism, gene regulation, immune function and microbial population dynamics. Work thus far suggests that MOS and low levels of lignin are both more effective than virginiamycin at decreasing gut colonization by the bacterium E. coli and at increasing numbers of beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria. The supplements may also help protect poultry from Salmonella challenge. These results could be of significant importance to the industry.
July 2008 Megan MacDonald was awarded the 2008 supplement and holds an NSERC Post Graduate Scholarship. Megan is studying, under the supervision of Dr. Katherine Edens Magor, innate immune responses to influenza virus infection. Specifically, she is interested in why ducks can survive as asymptomatic carriers of several strains of Avian Influenza which cause severe disease in chickens. Previous research suggests there are differences between ducks and chickens in certain receptors that recognize viral genetic material. These receptors (known as immune detectors), when stimulated, participate in a cascade of immune system responses. Megan’s work led to the discovery of a new influenza detector, RIG-1, that is present in ducks but not in chickens. She hypothesizes that this difference relates to why ducks are resistant and chickens susceptible to a number of viruses.
Megan has already published two papers, and has made four poster/oral presentations. Megan was one of only three students worldwide selected to present a paper at an immunology conference in France in 2006.
July 2007 This year’s recipient of the CPRC postgraduate scholarship supplement was Holley Pizzey. Holley is working in Dr. Grégoy Bédécarrats’ lab at the University of Guelph. She is studying prolactin, a pituitary hormone whose expression is associated not only with incubation behaviour, but on a multitude of other functions, including stimulation of the immune system. The main objective of Holley’s research project is to study, at the molecular level, the effects of prolactin on development and function of the immune system. A great deal of background work has been performed in Dr. Bédécarrats’ lab and the project is well poised to increase the relatively small knowledge base on prolactin’s role in immune function. This increased knowledge may have important implications to breeding schemes, which have traditionally selected against incubation behaviour and could have affected prolactin expression.
November 2007 The first recipient of CPRCs postgraduate scholarship supplement, Mohamed Faizal Abdul Careem, recently reported on his previous year’s work. Faizal has obtained status of Diplomat of the American College of Poultry Veterinarians (ACPV) and has been accepted by the College of Veterinarians of Ontario (CVO) as a licensed poultry veterinarian. He has published 5 papers, submitted 2 more manuscripts, made an oral presentation and contributed to 2 poster presentations. His academic performance remains very high – Faizal was awarded the Soren Rosendal Memorial Research Prize and the Korean-Canadian Dr. F. Schofield Memorial Scholarship from the Ontario Veterinary College, as well as the Reed Rumsey Award from the American Association of Avian Pathologists. In recognition of his outstanding performance, the 2nd installment of his supplement has been sent to Faizal.
September 2006 Three applications were received under the program this year. After careful review, the CPRC is pleased to announce Mohamed Faizal Abdul Careem as the recipient of this year’s supplement. Faizal is a PhD student working under supervision of Drs. Shayan Sharif and Bruce Hunter at the University of Guelph. The objectives of his research project are to determine the mechanism of immune response following embryo vaccination against Marek’s Disease (MD) and to see whether embryo vaccination against MD has any adverse effects on subsequent development of immune responsiveness. Faizal is a recipient of a prestigious Canada Graduate Scholarship
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