Johne’s disease and its complex status: different strategies to improve disease resistance

Dr. Nathalie Bissonnette graduated with a Ph.D. from the Université de Sherbrooke in 1998 studying Oncology and Radiobiology in collaboration with the Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire (IGBMC; Institut Pasteur) from Strasbourg, France. She joined Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) in 2001 to study the detection of quantitative trait loci affecting economically important traits in dairy cattle using microsatellite markers in collaboration with The SEMEX Alliance Inc. Next, she studied male fertility for the identification of markers associated with bull fertility. Since 2008, she has been carrying out functional genetics programs focused on low-heritability traits, such as the immune system. Dr. Bissonnette’s team at AAFC’s Sherbrooke Research and Development Centre is now studying host–pathogen interactions and genetic and epidemiological factors in Johne’s disease (bovine paratuberculosis). Her team has developed new approaches to identify causal mutations that control disease resistance. Given the economic importance and possible zoonotic nature of paratuberculosis, the dairy industry must be proactive and develop strategies to reduce its incidence in dairy cattle.