CIRAD Research Team

The Animal Health research Unit of CIRAD in Guadeloupe is a research center and diagnostic laboratory, with a regional expertise on vector-borne and emerging diseases in the Caribbean. It is the OIE reference laboratory for heartwater and OIE collaborating center on diagnostic, epidemiology and control of tropical animal diseases, as well as the headquarters of the Caribbean Animal Health Network, CaribVET. It is also a regional diagnostic laboratory for Avian Influenza, Newcastle Diseases, Tick-borne diseases and West Nile virus. 

Guadeloupe is one of the location of the "Control des maladie Animales Exotiques et Emergentes" research unit, based in Montpellier and which is organized over 4 geographic regions: the Caribbean, South of France, West Africa (Senegal) Indian Ocean (La Reunion island) where other regional animal health networks are based: CaribVET, Remesa, Resolab and Resepi, Animal Risk.

Cirad research team in Guadeloupe markedly contributed to develop research culture in close link with agriculture and decision makers especially with the development of CaribVET, a model of animal health network unique where research / policy interaction play a pivotal role for sustainable development of CaribVET and animal health projects in the Caribbean region.

Mutlidisciplinary Research and surveillance on vector-borne diseases and vectors

Objectives are to understand the dynamics of diseases and their vectors, conduct surveillance of diseases to anticipate sanitary risks and develop appropriate control strategies together or in close collaboration with the veterinary authorities in Guadeloupe (DAAF). Research fields and diseases model are described below

Competences

• Immunology
• Molecular biology
• Virology
• Bacteriology
• Genomics
• Diagnostic
• Veterinary epidemiology
• Mathematical modelling
• Epidemiological Surveillance
• Network engineering

Diseases models

• Heartwater, Erhlichia ruminantium, and Tropical Bont Tick (Amblyomma variegatum)
• West Nile virus and mosquitoes
• Blue tongue and Culicoides
• Resistance of Cattle Tick Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus to acaricides
• Babesiosis and Anaplasmosis

Infrastructures

• 200 m² laboratories: cell culture, platforms of molecular biology, serology, immunology, proteomics and in vivo imagery.
• Animal facility (goats) and ticks insectarium
• Forseen in 2014: Biosecurity Level 3 Laboratory, animal facility (small animals) and insectarium for the conduct of quarantine pathogens and to reinforce security of diagnostic for the Caribbean region.

Equipment

• High Throughputs sequencing platform
• High Throughputs diagnostic platform (Real time PCR machines, extraction robot)
• Cytometry platform
• Proteomic platform
• Imagery platform

Staff

CIRAD Guadeloupe hosts about 120 scientists and technicians. The team working in animal health, based on Duclos site is made-up of 24 persons including 7 persons recruited on the Epigenesis project: permanent researchers (5), laboratory technologists (4), Post-doctorates (6 recruited on the Epigenesis project), PhD students (3), Master student (1), short-term epidemiologist (1), animal facilities manager (1), animal health worker (1) and administrative support assistant (2 including one recruited on the Epigenesis project).