University of Delaware
Office of Public Relations
UpDate - Vol. 16, No. 24, March 20


            New Allen research lab  to aid poultry industry
     
     
     When Carla Short's husband died from a heart attack 20
years ago, she suddenly found herself solely responsible for
the care of seven chicken houses, 500 acres of crop land and
one 4-year-old daughter. "I knew Robert had been raising
chickens," she recalled. "That's about all I knew."
     As a novice poultry grower, Short could easily have
lost her flock to infectious bronchitis, a common virus-
induced respiratory disease among chickens. Fortunately, she
received support and training from Perdue Farms. Like all
other leading poultry producers in the region, Perdue relies
on agricultural research-including a broad range of
biotechnology initiatives at the University of Delaware-to
keep flocks healthy and to ensure a safe, nutritious food
supply.
     The new Allen Laboratory at UD, dedicated on Monday,
March 17, promises even greater benefits for poultry
producers and growers like Short, owner of the Alro farm
near Georgetown, Del. As the world's premiere poultry-
disease research facility, the 16,635-square-foot Allen
Biotechnology Lab features cutting-edge technologies for
meeting the challenges that face the poultry industry.
     "Researchers at the Allen Laboratory will develop
faster, more accurate techniques for diagnosing diseases
that can affect poultry throughout the country," UD
President David P. Roselle said. "Our researchers also will
synthesize new vaccines for poultry viruses, which are
constantly evolving to resist existing treatments. The Allen
Laboratory will allow UD researchers to work in partnership
with the Delmarva region's integrated poultry industry,
which produced $1.5 billion worth of food in 1995 and
currently provides jobs for over 20,000 people."
     The Allen Laboratory will be "a tremendous resource to
the region's poultry growers and producers," said John C.
Nye, dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences. A long
list of federal, state and private partners-including
Delmarva's poultry and allied industries, Delaware U.S. Sen.
Joseph R. Biden Jr., Gov. Thomas R. Carper, and poultry
producer Charles C. Allen Jr., Delaware '40-helped bring the
$8 million-plus facility to Delaware.
     "Just one serious outbreak of avian influenza could
cost roughly $900 million in lost poultry sales-a major blow
to Delaware's economy," Biden said. "This facility,
literally the finest in the nation, will help researchers
analyze and respond to the latest threats, keeping Delaware
poultry growers at the forefront of the poultry industry
well into the 21st century."
     According to Carper, "Agriculture is Delaware's number
one industry- and we intend to keep it that way. Thanks to
this state-of-the-art facility that the state has been proud
to help finance, researchers will be better equipped to meet
the challenges facing this industry-keeping our chickens,
and the entire Delaware poultry business, healthy for years
to come."
     Researchers at UD are already investigating many
strains of different poultry viruses-including, for example,
chicken anemia, infectious bronchitis, bursal disease,
laryngotracheitis, Marek's disease and Newcastle disease.
"All of these viruses mutate over time, so we are constantly
seeing new strains," explained Jack Gelb Jr., a professor of
animal and food sciences. "We have to stay one step ahead of
these diseases, in terms of our diagnostic and vaccine
research."
     That strategy paid off in the winter of 1992, when a
new variety of bronchitis swept through Delmarva poultry
flocks. By analyzing the sequence of the genetic code
contained in samples of the virus, Gelb said, "We were able
to determine that it was a mutant strain. A new vaccine was
developed to control it."
     Vaccines may be developed by manipulating viruses to
make them less potent, or by using related viruses derived
from another species. The imposter virus can then be used to
"trick" the chicken's immune system into fighting the real
disease, Gelb said. Researchers at UD are also developing
"recombinant" vaccines, which can combat two diseases, using
genes derived from two different viruses, said Robin W.
Morgan, professor of animal and food sciences.
     Morgan's research will help growers prevent major
losses resulting from Marek's disease. Ultimately, the work
also could serve as "a model for how you might be able to
control viral-induced tumors in other species," she said. In
the future, fundamental information about the poultry genome
should help growers breed healthier, more disease-resistant
and nutritious poultry, said Associate Prof. Joan Burnside,
who is investigating the immune system of chickens.
     Adjacent to UD's dairy farm on the Newark campus, the
Allen Laboratory features specially designed "clean rooms"
to ensure the integrity of data generated in a highly
controlled environment, said John K. Rosenberger,
chairperson of UD's Department of Animal and Food Sciences.
"Monolithic" or seamless floors, mechanical systems that
direct air through biological filters, shower facilities and
other special features will help protect samples inside the
lab, he added.
     The Allen Laboratory will house computer-controlled
gene sequencers and a host of other equipment necessary for
contemporary research, Rosenberger said.
                                          -Ginger Pinholster