The livestock gut health team Ghent, embedded within the department of Pathobiology, Pharmacology and Zoological Medicine, studies the interaction between the microbiota and the host in production animals, with a focus on the gastro-intestinal tract. One research area is on interaction between the taxonomic and functional composition of the microbiota, and the host, and how this is influenced by environmental triggers, dietary compounds, and pathogens. A second research area is on the pathogenesisof diseases caused by gastro-intestinal and zoonotic bacterial pathogens. This has consequences for understanding the pathobiology of diseases, improving animal performance, and development of diagnostic and preventive strategies for gastro-intestinaldiseases.