Profile information for Joshua Lyte, Ph.D., M.S.

Research

Dr. Lyte’s interdisciplinary research program focuses on the interface of poultry gastrointestinal physiology with the microbiome, especially during periods of stress. Research aims include the gastrointestinal tract as a launchpad to elucidate bi-directional physiological axes on overall bird health and performance, such as the microbiota-gut-respiratory and microbiota-gut-brain axes. The overall objective of this research is to identify how the wide variety of acute and chronic stressors that birds regularly encounter in the production environment (i.e. heat, cold, transport, social, and other forms of stress) drive intestinal development, inflammation, susceptibility to infection, and other aspects that inform both bird performance and health. His research includes chickens, ducks, turkeys, and quail to identify and develop translational, mechanistic based approaches of how host–microbe functional interaction can be effectively used across poultry species. This research has cross-disciplinary value across food animal species as neurophysiological-based host-microbiome interactions in poultry are often conserved in both mammals such as pigs and cattle, as well as aquatic species.