Research Focus: From nematodes in Kenyan dairy calves to respiratory infections in mice

Researchers from the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH) at the Roslin Institute and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) have demonstrated the utility of the Nemabiome tool for identifying gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) species in dairy calves. The study revealed that co-infections were common, occurring in nearly 70% of calves, with heavier infections observed in males and those managed under pasture systems.

The findings show how the Nemabiome tool can improve the management of parasitic nematodes and guide sustainable treatment strategies in tropical smallholder dairy systems, while also highlighting its advantages over traditional approaches such as faecal egg counts.

Citation: Cheptoo S, Yalcindag E, González Gordon L, Rukwaro B, Kimatu JS, Wasonga J, Karani BE, Ndambuki G, Migeni S, Kagai J, Kiprotich LE, Saya N, Vasoya D, Nangekhe G, Onguso J, Mungai G, Bronsvoort BM, Cook EAJ. Front Vet Sci. 2025 Aug 12;12:1588350. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1588350. PMCID: PMC12379043.

In this editorial Ben Kasstan-Dabush from the School of Social and Political Science considers the implications of changes to the public health ecology in the U.S for routine childhood vaccination programmes in the UK. 

These are unprecented times for vaccine research and delivery, as an agenda against vaccination is being led from the highest political echelons of the United States. Robert Kennedy Jr., Secretary of the Department of Health & Human Services, is undermining the delivery of routine vaccination programmes and provision of evidence-based information on the safety and effectiveness if vaccines for the public and healthcare practitioners. 

We discuss the implications of this shifting landscape for the UK, and how changes to NHS England and budget reductions will limit responsiveness and preparedness.

Citation: Kasstan-Dabush B, Bedford H, Chantler T. Epidemiol Infect. 2025 Aug 11;153:e91. doi: 10.1017/S0950268825100368. PMID: 40785598.

Pedro Vale (Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh), and co-authors Chadi M. Saad-Roy, and Mike Boots (Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley) argue that differences in prior infections create hidden immune differences that can steer outbreaks—and that forecasts improve when we account for variable infection histories. 

Bridging insights from insects and other invertebrates, which can be “primed” by earlier exposure even without adaptive immune memory, to mammals, they show that prior exposure can alter the chance of acquiring infection, how much pathogen a host sheds, its illness severity, and even post-infection risks; these shifts can slow spread or, at times, make dynamics more erratic. 

The paper outlines an empirical roadmap—leveraging tractable invertebrate models and dose–response designs to quantify these differences and feed them into forecasting tools, bringing evolutionary disease ecology directly into public health forecasting.

Citation: Vale PF, Saad-Roy CM, Boots M. PLoS Biol. 2025 Aug 11;23(8):e3003311. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003311. PMID: 40788849; PMCID: PMC12338777.

Researchers from the Moredun Research Institute (in collaboration with The Roslin Institute) have developed “mini-guts” from cattle and sheep stem cells and flipped them inside out to expose their working surface – the side that faces food and microbes in a real intestine. In standard gut organoids this surface is hidden on the inside, making it hard to study how nutrients and microbes interact with the gut lining.

In a comprehensive characterisation of this organoid format, the team confirmed that not only were the variety of gut cells retained in apical-out organoids, but that they also showed helpful boosts in the expression of surface transport proteins and cell junctions. This means the organoids not only mimic the intestine but may even highlight important features more clearly. The apical-out model provides a powerful tool for studying gut infections and how the host responds to them.

Citation: Chapuis AF, Harte T, Price DRG, Faber MN, Anderson WA, Shih B, Hope JC, Moore J, Smith D. Royal Society Open Science. 2025 Jul 30^; 12(7):250326. doi: 10.1098/rsos.250326. PMID: 40740711. PMCID: PMC12307977

Protective immunity against filarial nematode infections can take a long time to become effective due infection-induced immune suppression. Usi Parasitic worms can live inside us for decades due to their ability to evade our immune system. Researchers from the School of Biological Sciences show that during parasitic infection the function of T cells is subverted, and they lose the ability to produce molecules that are key for their immune functions. 

As T cells are an essential cell responsible for overall coordination of the immune system, this results in an ineffective immune response and a failure to kill the parasite. This work helps us to understand how parasites evade protective immunity, and will help us design treatments for infection or, by applying their evasion tricks to turn off harmful immune responses, new therapies for diseases such as allergies and autoimmunity.  

Citation: Knipper JA, Campbell SM, Allen JE, Taylor MD. Eur J Immunol. 2025 Aug;55(8):e70021. doi: 10.1002/eji.70021. PMID: 40755147; PMCID: PMC12319375.

Researchers from the Institute of Ecology and Evolution investigated whether the time of day affects malaria infection in mammals, similar to daily rhythms influence mosquito susceptibility to malaria. They used malaria-infected mosquitoes to transmit parasites to mice at different points in the day corresponding to when mice are asleep or active. The study aimed to understand if the host's circadian rhythms in feeding or in immune defences impacts the ability of malaria parasites to establish an infection. 

The results showed no significant difference in parasite burdens according to the host’s time of day, even when parasites were under additional stress of antimalarial drug treatment. This suggests that the timing of malaria infection in mammals might not be as crucial as in mosquitoes. Understanding these patterns is vital since mosquitoes are changing their biting times, potentially impacting transmission and control strategies.

Citation: Schneider P, O'Donnell AJ, Herbert-Mainero A, Reece SE. Parasit Vectors. 2025 Aug 6;18(1):339. doi: 10.1186/s13071-025-06986-7. PMID: 40770720; PMCID: PMC12329948.

Immune cells like mast cells have important physiological functions beyond protective immunity, e.g. in development. It was previously reported that mast cells promote growth and branching of breast tissue during puberty but researchers from the Institute for Regeneration and Repair and the Institute of Ecology and Evolution have shown here that they are in fact not actually essential for this process. 

Although these cells are present in the developing mammary gland, improved genetic mouse models with better specificity for mast cell targeting have revealed that removing mast cells doesn’t stop normal pubertal branching in the gland. This suggests that other cells or mechanisms can compensate for their absence, challenging earlier beliefs about their key role in breast development.

Citation: Kapoor S, Munz CM, Marsden J, Carvalho C, Tinsley H, Pinto MM, Malengier-Devlies B, Becker S, Seuzaret G, Patatsos K, Akyol R, Pederson AB, Wilson G, Dalod M, Gentek R. Eur J Immunol. 2025 Aug;55(8):e70036. doi: 10.1002/eji.70036. PMID: 40820378; PMCID: PMC12358710.

Researchers from the Centre for Inflammation Research conducted a study which shows that a common cold virus called Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) can cause long-lasting changes in cells lining the lung, even weeks after infection. Lung cells become better at detecting and responding to other invaders by showing more "flags" (MHC molecules) on their surface. 

This may help boost immune defence but could also increase the risk of developing asthma. The findings help explain how early infections might shape long-term lung health and immune responses.

Citation: Janas PP, T'Jonck W, Burgess MO, Reck M, Chauché C, Vermeren M, Lucas CD, Bain C, Illingworth R, Roberts EW, McSorley HJ, Schwarze J. Allergy. 2025 Aug 7. doi: 10.1111/all.16683. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40772364.