Oklahoma State University was awarded a $650,000 Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) federal grant program.
The grant will fund research to develop epigenetic compounds as next-generation antibiotic alternatives for livestock use. Specifically, the researchers will further screen combinations of epigenetic compounds to identify those highly potent at inducing host defense peptide gene expression in vitro and in vivo. They will determine the efficacy of selected combinations in alleviating necrotic enteritis disease in a chicken model. Additionally, the researchers will reveal the molecular mechanisms by which epigenetic compounds induce host defense peptide synthesis and modulate host immunity.
The outcomes of this three-year research period ending January 2027 are expected to lead to the development of small-molecule epigenetic compounds as the first class of antibiotic alternatives for disease control and prevention in livestock.
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