Avian Immunology

Bernd Kaspers graduated as a veterinarian in 1986 at the University of Munich and completed his doctoral thesis (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) in 1989. He subsequently worked as a post-doc at the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Livestock and Poultry Sciences Institute, Beltsville, MD, USA and returned to the University of Munich in 1992 where he became a full Professor for Animal Physiology in 1997.Since his dissertation he has focused on avian immuno-physiology investigating B-lymphocyte biology, cytokines and the mucosal immune system in chickens. This work included studies on a range of infection models such as avian coccidiosis, avian influenza, Marek’s Disease and Salmonella infections. His research is documented in more than 85 publications in peer-reviewed journals, several reviews and book chapters.His work is funded by grants from the German Research Foundation, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the European Union and through several co-operations with the poultry and vaccine industry.Bernd Kaspers is member of the German Society for Immunology and as such has been speaker of the Veterinary Immunology Study Group of the society for the last 6 years. In 2004 he hosted together with Thomas Goebel the 8th Avian Immunology Research Group Meeting in Munich with more than 120 participants. Professor Emeritus K.A. (Ton) Schat received his veterinary degree from the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands in 1970 and his PhD degree in Virology from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY in 1978. He joined the faculty at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University in 1978, where he remained until his retirement in 2011. His research focused on the immunology and pathogenesis of viral diseases of poultry, especially Marek’s disease and chicken infectious anemia. He has published over 165 papers in peer-reviewed journals and more than 30 book chapters. His contributions to avian disease research were recognized with the Upjohn Achievement Award of the AAAP in1986, the Dr. Bart Rispens Research Award of the WVPA in 1987, the Pfizer Award for Excellence in Poultry Research of the AVMA in 1999, and the Merck Award for Achievement in Poultry Science of the PSA in 2005. In 2010 he was recognized by his peers with a special award for outstanding research in the field of Marek’s disease. He is a founding member of the Hall of Honour of the World Veterinary Poultry Association.

The importance of the avian immune system and its unique features
Structure of the avian lymphoid system
Development of the avian immune system
B cells, the bursa of Fabricius and the generation of antibody reperotires
Avian T cells: antigen recognition and lineage
Structure and evolution of avian immunoglobulins
Avian innate immune responses
The avian MHC
Avian antigen presenting cells
Avian cytokines and chemokines
Immunogenetics and mapping immunological functions
The avian mucosal immune system
The avian enteric immune system in health and disease
The avian respiratory immune system
The avian reproductive immune system
Avian immunosuppressive diseases and immune evasion
Factors modulating the avian immune system
Autoimmune diseases of poultry
Tumours of the avian immune system
Practical aspects of poultry vaccination
Comparative immunology of agricultural birds
Ecoimmunology
Appendix 1
Genetic stocks for immunological research
Appendix 2
Resources available for studying avian immunology