current studies
In 2008, Morris Animal Foundation will fund about 120 new and continuing studies for dogs, cats, horses, llamas/alpacas, and wildlife as well as 30 veterinary student projects.
We also have numerous studies nearing completion. You can search our current study database by species and/or disease to learn more about the studies we are funding in the areas you care most about. The results will also show you whether a study is available for sponsorship.
INSTRUCTIONS - Select a division from the left column, a disease or disorder from the middle column, and a study ID number from the right column.
D04EQ-027: “Cellular Immunity and Age-Associated Susceptibility to Rhodoccocus Equi”
principal investigator: Stephen A. Hines, DVM, PhD, Washington State University
sponsorship not needed
Nearly Complete
Rhodococcus equi-induced pneumonia is a common disease in young horses. A vaccine that prevents rhodococcal pneumonia would dramatically improve the health of young horses, but efforts to produce a protective vaccine have been unsuccessful so far. Because adult horses are immune to this disease, a better understanding of the protective immune response in adult horses is essential to immunization and vaccination efforts. Studies on human tuberculosis, which is caused by a related bacterium, suggest that unique lipids found in the horse’s bacterial cell wall may play an important role in immunity. The goal of this study is to examine those lipids for their potential to stimulate immunity in foals.
