Ethiopia
Two UCVM faculty members, James Wasmuth and John Gilleard, are working with other UCalgary researchers (Dr. Guido Van Marle, Cumming School of Medicine, and Dr. Lashitew Gemadu, Faculty of Science) to develop research capacity and post-graduate education opportunities with Ethiopian colleagues. This partnership includes research around parasitic infections of production animals and the emerging Ethiopian aquaculture industry, delivering training workshops for Ethiopian researchers.
Dr. John Gilleard is leading a research and post-graduate education program in One Health Approaches to Sustainable Human and Livestock Parasite Control with multiple international collaborations including Ethiopia, Tanzania, Belgium, Argentina, Uruguay and UK. Gastrointestinal nematodes (roundworm parasites) of livestock have major global economic impacts on animal welfare, agricultural economy and cause particularly severe problems for low-income smallholder livestock farmers. Closely related human parasites – the Soil Transmitted Helminths (STH) - are recognized by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as being amongst the most important Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) with 1.5 billion people infected worldwide. Control is dependent on the regular drug (anthelmintic) treatments and the same drugs are largely used in both livestock and humans. Resistance to these drugs is now widespread in livestock parasites and an emerging concern for in human parasites threatening sustainable control. Dr. Gilleard’s research program focuses on developing innovative approaches for diagnosis and surveillance of drug resistance and applying these to understand of the emergence and spread of drug resistant parasites and improve the effectiveness and sustainability of control.
Foreign leads:
- Dr. Delenasaw Yewhalaw
- Dr. Abebe Genetu Bayih,
- Dr. Zeleke Mekonnen
Other collaborators:
- University of Jimma
- University of Gondar
- Addis Ababa University
- Ethiopia Biotechnology Institute
- Armauer Hansen Research Institute
Funding: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Major accomplishments to date: Bioinformatics and genomics training workshops