Bankole Niyi Olorunsola is a veterinarian and virologist by training, and is currently working as a Field Diagnostic Manager for Zoetis under the African Livestock Productivity and Health Advancement (ALPHA) Initiative. Bankole has received various trainings including Livestock Biosecurity and Gut Health Management at the Ghent university Merebelke Campus in 2019, Abaxis Portfolio Training at Abaxis Head Office, Griesheim, Germany in 2020, and Livestock ELISA training at the Zoetis Regional Office, Lyon, France in 2020
Parts of his contribution to science and the advancement of animal and One Health include:
- Reporting the first confirmed case of the 2015 H5N1 avian influenza outbreak to the National Veterinary Research Institute in Nigeria;
- Coordinating one of the most extensive baseline studies of poultry diseases in Nigeria with a keen focus on Infectious bronchitis molecular epidemiology, which has revolutionized the vaccination program currently being used;
- Being an ambassador of the AMR INSIGHTS, a global community of scientists working to fight antimicrobial resistance, and;
- Introducing digital tools to monitor livestock health.
Olorunsola is a recipient of several international awards as a postgraduate student and field veterinarian, such as “The Modes of Action of Vaccine Adjuvants” in USA in 2014 and “Leveraging Genomic Diversity to Promote Animal and Human Health” in Uganda in 2019. He has a good number of publications to his name, and is presently working to ensure the adoption of laboratory testing by colleagues and farmers to cut wastage and eradicate blind treatments and antibiotics abuse. He has a long-term vision of researching the physiology and immunology of respiratory diseases of poultry.
Currently, he encourages farmers to embrace good biosecurity measures, proper management and use of laboratories to determine the proper vaccination timing and correct antibiotics when need be. Olorunsola also encourages the use of laboratory diagnosis, as this helps in adjusting some management of livestock instead of abuse of antibiotics. In the near future, he will be considering the aspects of quality control, especially in poultry feeds and feeding raw materials, as mycotoxins can make flocks susceptible to all sorts of conditions.
Biotalk(s)
Services to Modern Livestock Production