Current research interests:

The BBSRC Swine Flu Dynamics project.

In conjunction with Prof Mick Bailey at the School of Veterinary Sciences, and research partners at The Pirbright Institute, Cambridge, Oxford, the AHVLA (Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency, TGAC (The Genome Analysis Centre), and Industry partner Merial, we have recently been awarded a £4.4 million grant from the BBSRC to work on a long-term study on the transmission of swine influenza.

This collaborative project aims to better understand the transmission dynamics of the virus and the effectiveness of current vaccines, and will assess the benefits of different control strategies. During this project the pig immunology group at Bristol will characterise the immune response to influenza virus in the respiratory tract and blood of vaccinated and infected animals.

Feline infectious diseases.

I have a longstanding interest in the biology and pathogenesis of Chlamydia (Chlamydophila) felis. Current research work is focused on the biology of selected C. felis polymorphic membrane proteins (pmps).

Other recent areas of research interest include collaboration with the FIP (feline coronavirus) research group at Bristol.

Research keywords

• Veterinary Pathology
• Chlamydia
• Chlamydophila
• Molecular biology
• Immunology
• Swine flu

Further information about Dr Ross Harley can be found here.