The Leibniz ScienceCampus “Evolutionary Ecology of Zoonotic Pathogens during Agricultural Transformations” at the Leibniz Institute DSMZ in Braunschweig conducts research in cooperation with TU Braunschweig, the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture (MWK), the German Primate Centre – Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, the Johann Heinrich von Th\u00fcnen Institute and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI). The aim of the DSMZ ScienceCampus, which will start work in April 2024, is to use systematic approaches to gain more information about the spread and resistance of zoonotic pathogens.<\/p>\n
The new research will focus on understanding the evolutionary mechanisms that enable these pathogens to adapt to the environment and facilitate their transition to humans. The research will focus on pathogens that are often highly resistant to antibiotics: Clostridioides difficile (causing severe diarrhoea), enterococci (urinary tract and wound infections, including sepsis) and porcine coronaviruses (rare acute respiratory diseases).<\/p>\n
“The Leibniz Association and the state of Lower Saxony are funding the establishment of the Leibniz ScienceCampus EcoPath (Evolutionary Ecology of Zoonotic Pathogens during Agricultural Transformations) under the leadership of the Leibniz Institute DSMZ with a total of 3.8 million euros,” announced the scientific director of the institute, Prof. Dr. J\u00f6rg Overmann. The aim is to investigate the biological basis for the reproduction, spread and survival of pathogenic bacteria and viruses in the environment, typically in domestic and wild animals. They can cause dangerous infections in humans, but have not been sufficiently studied.<\/p>\n