Engineered probiotics to reduce Clostridia perfringes and prevent necrotic enteritis in chicken

Necrotic enteritis in both its clinical and subclinical forms is a major health welfare andperformance disease. Without technologies to control Clostridia perfringens (C. perf.) the causalagent of the disease producers are having a hard time to raise healthy birds and produce safe food.The challenge is now becoming acute with the withdrawal of antibiotics from livestock production.We propose to test a new class of safe probiotics that are equipped with antimicrobials that kill C.perf. With USDA support we will engineer 30 different modified probiotics against C. perf. Wewill test them and select the top performer to test in live birds.We hypothesize that modified probiotics can eliminate C. perf. and prevent necrotic enteritis inchickens. The proposed tests will provide the necessary proof of concept for further development.Our product will help chicken producers raise healthy birds reduce production losses and producesafe food. Our product can then help feed an increasing global population sustainably.