Stellah Mbao Position/Title: M.Sc. by thesis email: smbao@uoguelph.ca Phone: 519 731 5949 Office: ANNU 032 LinkedIn

My name is Stellah Mbao, a Masters by thesis student in the department of animal Biosciences, working under the supervision of Dr. Elijah Kiarie. I am originally from Nairobi, Kenya and have a BSc in Microbiology and Biotechnology (Hons) from the University of Nairobi (2016). I have always had a passion for science and the opportunity to further my studied led me to Canada and the University of Guelph. My project is on improving the gut health of meat- type chickens without using antibiotics by using Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF= A protein richly found in colostrum and milk; known for its ability to promote cell differentiation, maturation and healing) The pilot study on broilers was done by Emily Kim, PhD, a colleague in my lab and the findings can be found in the Journal of Poultry Science (https://academic.oup.com/ps/article/96/10/3676/4055766?searchresult=1). I will be furthering her research by looking at dose response of meat- type chickens to different EGF concentrations measured by growth and gut development. The most effective dose will then be used in a second trial on Eimeria- challenged broilers. I will be working closely with Dr. Elijah Kiarie, Dr. Mohsen, Dr. Julang Li and Dr. Nadeem with the help of my fellow lab mates. I come from a community in Kenya who are well known for their love for chicken. The luhya community is characterised by small scale poultry farmers whose livelihood primarily depends on small scale farming. The farmers are however not aware of best practises to better their income. The knowledge that I acquire from this program will help me advice poultry producers in my community to help better their income