<pstyle="color: white;">In the search for an appropriate carrier organism, many considerations had to be taken into account. Most importantly, to prevent disruption of the local microbiome a suitable organism has to be selected from native bacteria. Literature indicates that Influenza A mainly reproduces in the respiratory and gastrointestinal tract, therefore our search started there (insert reference).
<pstyle="color: white;">In the search for an appropriate carrier organism, many considerations had to be taken into account. Most importantly, to prevent disruption of the local microbiome a suitable organism has to be selected from native bacteria. Literature indicates that Influenza A mainly reproduces in the respiratory and gastrointestinal tract, therefore our search started there (insert reference).
<pAcommonorganismtoinhabitthelungsandgutmicrobiomeofchickensisLactobacillusreuteri(orLimosilactobacillusreuteri),<istyle="color: white;"L.reuteri</i> was even shown in literature to be most commonly found when compared to other bacteria present. Therefore this became one of our first choices. To solidify the findings and bring more support to the claim that L.reuteri is present in Dutch poultry, we performed a microbiome analysis which can be found on our <astyle="color: white;"href="{{ url_for('pages', page='results') }}"> style="color: #ffc30b;">results</a> page. In tandem with presence other considerations must be taken into account such as: precedents of previous successful genetic engineering, effectiveness for nanobody secretion, effects on chicken health, survivability, escape frequency, amongst others.</p>
<pAcommonorganismtoinhabitthelungsandgutmicrobiomeofchickensisLactobacillusreuteri(orLimosilactobacillusreuteri),<istyle="color: white;"L.reuteri</i> was even shown in literature to be most commonly found when compared to other bacteria present. Therefore this became one of our first choices. To solidify the findings and bring more support to the claim that L.reuteri is present in Dutch poultry, we performed a microbiome analysis which can be found on our <astyle="color: white;"href="{{ url_for('pages', page='results') }}"> style="color: #ffc30b;">results</a> page. In tandem with presence other considerations must be taken into account such as: precedents of previous successful genetic engineering, effectiveness for nanobody secretion, effects on chicken health, survivability, escape frequency, amongst others.</p>
<h2>Biocontainment:</h2>
<h2>Biocontainment:</h2>
<pstyle="color: white;">Due to the possibility of bacteria to incorporate foreign DNA into its own genome, DNA of our engineered bacteria could enter the environment and have unforeseen consequences. To prevent this, a killing mechanism of the bacteria was designed to be repressed by two environmental factors: high temperature and the absence of light. Both of these are characteristic of the poultry lung environment (41°C and devoid of light). In order to survive, the carriers must remain in an environment fitting these conditions, very much unlike the exterior of lung poultry. Additionally, our kill-switch can be activated using a non-toxic chemical as an extra fail-safe measure </p>
<pstyle="color: white;">Due to the possibility of bacteria to incorporate foreign DNA into its own genome, DNA of our engineered bacteria could enter the environment and have unforeseen consequences. To prevent this, a killing mechanism of the bacteria was designed to be repressed by two environmental factors: high temperature and the absence of light. Both of these are characteristic of the poultry lung environment (41°C and devoid of light). In order to survive, the carriers must remain in an environment fitting these conditions, very much unlike the exterior of lung poultry. Additionally, our kill-switch can be activated using a non-toxic chemical as an extra fail-safe measure.</p>
<h2>Choice of Therapeutic:</h2>
<h2>Choice of Therapeutic:</h2>
<pstyle="color: white;">The classical approach towards tackling viral epidemics has been with the use of vaccines ever since Edward Jenner inoculated a boy with cowpox to confer immunity. However the development of vaccines is a costly process and carries with it certain downsides such as intensive campaigns and for poultry the limitations of trade. We initially set out to confer immunity by use of an engineered lettuce, but due to the trade regulations we quickly went for another approach. </p>
<pstyle="color: white;">The classical approach towards tackling viral epidemics has been with the use of vaccines ever since Edward Jenner inoculated a boy with cowpox to confer immunity. However the development of vaccines is a costly process and carries with it certain downsides such as intensive campaigns and for poultry the limitations of trade. We initially set out to confer immunity by use of an engineered lettuce, but due to the trade regulations we quickly went for another approach. </p>
