Rate My Professor Katrin Gundula Renz

Dr. Katrin G. Renz is a research fellow in the Department of Animal Science at the University of New England (UNE), Armidale, Australia, within the School of Environmental and Rural Science. She completed her PhD at UNE and has conducted extensive research in poultry virology, concentrating on the tissue distribution, shedding, environmental detection, replication kinetics, transmission, and vaccine efficacy against major avian pathogens. Her work addresses infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) genome detection in meat chickens of different ages, chicken anaemia virus (CAV) distribution in tissues, faeces, and environment up to 56 days post-infection, and lateral transmission via faecal-oral or dust inhalation routes. Renz has investigated turkey haemorrhagic enteritis virus (HEV) propagation in chickens and the behaviour of Marek's disease virus (MDV), including very virulent strains and Australian isolates' pathology, viral load, neuropathotyping, and co-infections.

A significant portion of her research evaluates the Rispens CVI988 vaccine, examining its protective effects against MDV challenges of varying virulence, the influence of vaccination-challenge intervals on replication kinetics and shedding, field studies on vaccine virus persistence, spread, and co-infection extent, as well as outcomes in single and mixed infections. Key publications include 'Tissue distribution, shedding and environmental detection of infectious bursal disease virus genome following infection of meat chickens at two ages' (2018), 'Propagation of an Avirulent Turkey Hemorrhagic Enteritis Virus Isolate in Chickens' (2018), 'Field studies of the detection, persistence and spread of the Rispens CVI988 vaccine virus and the extent of co-infection with Marek's disease virus' (2016), 'Effects of Rispens CVI988 vaccination followed by challenge with Marek's disease viruses of differing virulence on the replication kinetics and shedding of the vaccine and challenge viruses' (2015), 'In vivo characterisation of two Australian isolates of Marek's disease virus including pathology, viral load and neuropathotyping based on clinical signs' (2015), 'Replication kinetics and shedding of very virulent Marek's Disease virus and vaccinal Rispens/CVI988 virus during single and mixed infections varying in order and interval between infections' (2014), and 'Vaccination-challenge interval markedly influences protection provided by Rispens CVI988 vaccine against very virulent Marek's disease virus challenge' (2013). Her 23 publications have accumulated over 440 citations, contributing to advancements in poultry disease management and vaccine strategies. Renz has collaborated on Australian Poultry CRC projects and co-supervised PhD students.