Royal seal of approval for Moredun

The work of the internationally renowned Moredun Research Institute came under royal scrutiny yesterday with a visit by the Princess Royal.

During her tour of the lab, the princess, patron of the Moredun Foundation, met scientists who have developed a new quick and effective diagnostic test for sheep scab, a debilitating and painful endemic disease in the UK.

The Princess Royal also met scientists from Moredun, SAC and the University of Edinburgh who are working together to try to discover the cause of bleeding calf syndrome, an emerging disease of young calves which is almost always fatal.

She also spoke to Moredun scientists working on improving existing diagnostic tests and vaccines for chlamydial abortion of sheep, a major cause of lamb mortality across the world.

Moredun's chief executive, Professor Julie Fitzpatrick, said she was delighted by the visit of the patron: "I hope that she enjoyed learning more about some of our research into infectious diseases of livestock and meeting some of our partners."