research topics for veterinary

Veterinary Medicine Research Paper Topics

Veterinary medicine research paper topics encompass a wide range of subjects that contribute to the advancement of animal healthcare. This page provides a comprehensive guide for students studying veterinary medicine who are tasked with writing research papers. Explore the intricacies of this field, delve into diverse categories, and discover a multitude of compelling topics to delve into. Whether you’re interested in animal behavior, infectious diseases, pharmacology, or veterinary surgery, this guide will help you navigate the realm of veterinary medicine research paper topics. By offering expert advice on topic selection and providing valuable insights on how to write an impactful research paper, we aim to empower students to make significant contributions to the field of veterinary medicine. Furthermore, iResearchNet’s writing services ensure that students receive top-quality, customized research papers tailored to their unique requirements. Let us help you unleash your academic potential and make a lasting impact in the world of veterinary medicine.

100 Veterinary Medicine Research Paper Topics

Introduction: The field of veterinary medicine encompasses a vast array of disciplines and areas of study, offering a wealth of research opportunities for students. This comprehensive list of veterinary medicine research paper topics is divided into 10 categories, each containing 10 unique topics. By exploring these topics, students can gain a deeper understanding of various aspects of veterinary medicine and contribute to the advancement of animal healthcare.

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Animal Behavior and Psychology:

• The impact of environmental enrichment on animal behavior and welfare
• Behavioral interventions for managing aggression in dogs
• Understanding the role of animal cognition in training and behavior modification
• The relationship between human-animal interaction and animal behavior
• Investigating stress and coping mechanisms in companion animals
• The effects of socialization on the behavior and development of puppies and kittens
• Exploring the psychological well-being of captive animals in zoos
• Behavioral indicators and management strategies for pain in animals
• Understanding the behavior and welfare of farm animals in intensive production systems
• Investigating the impact of fear and anxiety on animal welfare in veterinary settings

Infectious Diseases:

• Emerging zoonotic diseases and their impact on public health
• Antimicrobial resistance in veterinary medicine: challenges and strategies
• The role of vaccination in preventing infectious diseases in companion animals
• Epidemiology and control measures for common bacterial infections in livestock
• Investigating the transmission dynamics of vector-borne diseases in animals
• Diagnostic methods and advancements in the detection of viral infections in animals
• One Health approach: addressing the link between animal and human infectious diseases
• The impact of climate change on the prevalence and distribution of infectious diseases in wildlife
• Surveillance and control measures for emerging viral diseases in aquaculture
• Exploring the impact of biosecurity measures in preventing the spread of infectious diseases in veterinary clinics and hospitals

Pharmacology and Therapeutics:

• Investigating the efficacy and safety of new veterinary drugs and therapies
• Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of commonly used drugs in veterinary practice
• Adverse drug reactions and drug interactions in veterinary medicine
• Exploring alternative therapies in veterinary medicine: acupuncture, herbal medicine, and more
• The role of personalized medicine in veterinary practice
• Drug-resistant parasites and strategies for their control in companion animals
• Investigating the use of pain management protocols in veterinary surgery
• The impact of nutraceuticals and dietary supplements on animal health
• Pharmacogenomics in veterinary medicine: implications for personalized treatment
• Exploring the challenges and opportunities in veterinary drug development

Veterinary Surgery and Anesthesia:

• Advancements in minimally invasive surgery in veterinary medicine
• Anesthetic management and monitoring in exotic animal species
• Investigating surgical techniques for the treatment of orthopedic conditions in companion animals
• Complications and management of anesthesia in geriatric patients
• Exploring the role of regenerative medicine in veterinary surgery
• Surgical interventions for the management of oncological conditions in animals
• Investigating novel approaches for pain management in postoperative veterinary patients
• Surgical techniques and rehabilitation strategies for the treatment of spinal cord injuries in animals
• Exploring the use of robotic surgery in veterinary medicine
• Investigating the impact of surgical interventions on the quality of life in animals

Diagnostic Imaging and Radiology:

• Advancements in imaging techniques for the early detection of cancer in animals
• Investigating the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in veterinary neurology
• The role of ultrasound in diagnosing and managing cardiovascular diseases in animals
• Radiographic evaluation and interpretation of musculoskeletal disorders in small animals
• Investigating the use of computed tomography (CT) in veterinary oncology
• Diagnostic imaging in avian and exotic animal medicine
• The impact of advanced imaging modalities on the diagnosis of gastrointestinal diseases in animals
• Exploring the role of nuclear medicine in veterinary diagnostics
• Radiographic evaluation and interpretation of respiratory disorders in large animals
• Investigating the use of contrast-enhanced imaging techniques in veterinary medicine

Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology:

• One Health approach in the surveillance and control of zoonotic diseases
• Investigating foodborne pathogens and their impact on animal and human health
• The role of veterinarians in disaster preparedness and response
• Veterinary epidemiology: studying disease patterns and risk factors in animal populations
• Investigating the impact of environmental factors on animal health and well-being
• Exploring the relationship between animal agriculture and antimicrobial resistance
• Veterinary public health interventions for the prevention of zoonotic diseases
• The role of wildlife in the transmission of infectious diseases to domestic animals
• Investigating the impact of climate change on vector-borne diseases in veterinary medicine
• Surveillance and control measures for emerging and re-emerging diseases in veterinary public health

Animal Nutrition and Feed Science:

• Investigating the impact of diet and nutrition on companion animal health
• The role of nutritional interventions in the management of obesity in animals
• Exploring the nutritional requirements and feed formulations for exotic animal species
• Nutritional strategies for the prevention and management of metabolic diseases in livestock
• Investigating the impact of feed additives on animal performance and health
• The role of probiotics and prebiotics in promoting gut health in animals
• Nutritional management of common gastrointestinal disorders in companion animals
• Exploring sustainable and environmentally friendly feed options for livestock
• Investigating the impact of nutrition on reproductive performance in animals
• Nutritional considerations for the optimal growth and development of neonatal animals

Veterinary Education and Professional Development:

• Evaluating the effectiveness of veterinary education programs in preparing students for practice
• Investigating the role of simulation-based training in veterinary education
• Exploring innovative teaching methods in veterinary schools
• Assessing the impact of continuing education on veterinary professionals’ knowledge and skills
• Investigating the factors influencing career choices among veterinary students
• The impact of telemedicine on veterinary practice and client communication
• Exploring the challenges and opportunities in veterinary entrepreneurship
• Veterinary leadership and management skills for effective practice management
• Investigating the role of mentorship in veterinary education and professional development
• Exploring the ethical considerations in veterinary practice and research

Equine Medicine and Surgery:

• Investigating advancements in diagnostic imaging techniques for equine lameness
• Management strategies for musculoskeletal disorders in performance horses
• The impact of nutrition and exercise on the prevention and management of metabolic diseases in horses
• Exploring the use of regenerative therapies in equine orthopedics
• Investigating the impact of respiratory diseases on the performance and welfare of horses
• Equine dentistry: advancements in dental care and oral health management
• Exploring novel surgical interventions for the treatment of orthopedic conditions in horses
• The role of physical therapy and rehabilitation in equine medicine
• Investigating the impact of exercise physiology on performance enhancement in horses
• Infectious diseases and vaccination strategies in equine healthcare

Wildlife Medicine and Conservation:

• Investigating the impact of habitat loss on wildlife health and conservation
• Wildlife forensic medicine: techniques for investigating wildlife crimes
• The role of veterinarians in wildlife rehabilitation and release programs
• Exploring the impact of emerging infectious diseases on wildlife populations
• Investigating the use of contraception in wildlife population management
• Wildlife anesthesia and immobilization techniques for veterinary interventions
• Exploring the role of veterinary medicine in endangered species conservation
• Investigating the impact of pollution and environmental contaminants on wildlife health
• Wildlife diseases and their potential for spillover to domestic animal populations
• Conservation genetics: utilizing molecular techniques in wildlife management

This comprehensive list of veterinary medicine research paper topics provides students with a wide range of subjects to explore within the field. Whether you are interested in animal behavior, infectious diseases, pharmacology, surgery, or any other aspect of veterinary medicine, there are countless opportunities for research and innovation. By selecting a topic that aligns with your interests and career goals, and following the expert advice on how to choose and write a research paper, you can contribute to the advancement of veterinary medicine and make a lasting impact on animal health and welfare.

Veterinary Medicine: Exploring the Range of Research Paper Topics

Veterinary medicine plays a vital role in the health and well-being of animals, from beloved pets to livestock and wildlife. As a student studying veterinary medicine, you have the opportunity to delve into various research areas and contribute to advancements in animal healthcare. This article will explore the diverse range of research paper topics available within the field of veterinary medicine, offering you insights into the exciting and impactful areas of study.

• Animal Nutrition and Feed Science : Proper nutrition is fundamental to the health and well-being of animals. Research topics in this area could include investigating the impact of diet and nutrition on companion animal health, exploring nutritional interventions for managing metabolic diseases in livestock, and examining sustainable and environmentally friendly feed options for animals.
• Infectious Diseases : Infectious diseases pose significant challenges to animal health and public health. Research paper topics in this category could encompass emerging zoonotic diseases and their impact on human health, antimicrobial resistance in veterinary medicine, vaccination strategies for preventing infectious diseases in animals, and exploring the transmission dynamics of vector-borne diseases.
• Animal Behavior and Psychology : Understanding animal behavior and psychology is essential for providing optimal care. Research topics in this field may involve studying the impact of environmental enrichment on animal behavior and welfare, behavioral interventions for managing aggression in dogs, investigating the cognitive abilities of animals, and exploring the role of human-animal interaction in animal behavior.
• Pharmacology and Therapeutics : Pharmacology plays a critical role in treating and preventing diseases in animals. Research paper topics in this area could include investigating the efficacy and safety of new veterinary drugs and therapies, exploring alternative therapies such as acupuncture and herbal medicine, and studying the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of commonly used drugs in veterinary practice.
• Veterinary Surgery and Anesthesia : Surgical interventions are often necessary for diagnosing and treating various conditions in animals. Research topics in this category could focus on advancements in minimally invasive surgery, investigating anesthesia management and monitoring in different animal species, exploring regenerative medicine in veterinary surgery, and studying the impact of surgical interventions on the quality of life in animals.
• Diagnostic Imaging and Radiology : Diagnostic imaging techniques play a crucial role in diagnosing and monitoring diseases in animals. Research paper topics in this field may include advancements in imaging techniques for detecting cancer in animals, exploring the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) in veterinary diagnostics, and investigating the application of radiography and ultrasound in diagnosing specific conditions.
• Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology : Veterinary medicine intersects with public health in various ways. Research topics in this area could involve the One Health approach in the surveillance and control of zoonotic diseases, studying the impact of environmental factors on animal and human health, and investigating the link between animal agriculture and antimicrobial resistance.
• Equine Medicine and Surgery : Horses require specialized veterinary care due to their unique physiology and performance demands. Research paper topics in this category may include investigating advancements in diagnostic imaging techniques for equine lameness, studying the management strategies for musculoskeletal disorders in performance horses, and exploring the impact of respiratory diseases on horse performance and welfare.
• Wildlife Medicine and Conservation : The health and conservation of wildlife are essential for maintaining biodiversity. Research topics in this field could include studying the impact of habitat loss on wildlife health, investigating wildlife rehabilitation and release programs, exploring the role of veterinarians in wildlife conservation, and understanding the diseases that affect wildlife populations.
• Veterinary Education and Professional Development : Ensuring the competency and continuous development of veterinary professionals is crucial. Research paper topics in this area may involve evaluating veterinary education programs, exploring innovative teaching methods, studying the impact of continuing education on veterinary professionals’ knowledge and skills, and investigating the factors influencing career choices among veterinary students.

The field of veterinary medicine offers a wide range of research opportunities, spanning various disciplines and species. Whether you are interested in animal nutrition, infectious diseases, surgery, diagnostic imaging, public health, or any other aspect of veterinary medicine, there are numerous fascinating topics to explore. By selecting a research paper topic that aligns with your interests and goals, you can contribute to the advancement of veterinary medicine, improve animal health and welfare, and make a meaningful impact in the field.

Choosing Veterinary Medicine Research Paper Topics

Selecting the right research paper topic is crucial for your success as a student of veterinary medicine. It allows you to delve into an area of interest, contribute to existing knowledge, and explore the latest advancements in the field. In this section, we will provide you with expert advice on how to choose veterinary medicine research paper topics that align with your interests and academic goals.

• Identify Your Interests : Start by reflecting on your personal interests within the field of veterinary medicine. Consider the areas that fascinate you the most, such as animal behavior, infectious diseases, surgery, diagnostic imaging, wildlife medicine, or public health. Identifying your passions will make the research process more enjoyable and rewarding.
• Consult Your Professors and Mentors : Seek guidance from your professors and mentors who have expertise in different veterinary medicine disciplines. They can provide valuable insights into current research trends, emerging topics, and areas that need further exploration. Discuss your interests with them, and they can help you narrow down potential research paper topics based on their knowledge and experience.
• Stay Updated with Current Literature : Stay abreast of the latest research publications, scientific journals, and conference proceedings in the field of veterinary medicine. Regularly reading scientific literature will expose you to new research findings, innovative techniques, and emerging topics. This will help you identify gaps in the existing knowledge that you can address through your research paper.
• Consider Relevance and Impact : When selecting a research topic, consider its relevance and potential impact on veterinary medicine. Look for topics that address current challenges, emerging issues, or areas where advancements are needed. Research that can contribute to animal health, welfare, conservation, or public health will not only be academically fulfilling but also have real-world implications.
• Analyze Feasibility : Assess the feasibility of your chosen research topic in terms of available resources, time constraints, and access to data. Consider the availability of research materials, laboratory facilities, animal populations, or specialized equipment required for your study. Ensure that your chosen topic is practical and achievable within the given timeframe and available resources.
• Collaborate with Peers : Consider collaborating with your peers or fellow researchers who share similar research interests. Collaborative research projects can broaden your perspective, enhance the quality of your research, and facilitate knowledge sharing. Engaging in interdisciplinary collaborations can also help you explore topics that combine veterinary medicine with other fields, such as biology, ecology, or public health.
• Seek Inspiration from Case Studies and Clinical Experience : Drawing inspiration from case studies, clinical experiences, or real-world scenarios can lead to intriguing research topics. Reflect on challenging cases you have encountered during clinical rotations, unique observations, or clinical questions that have piqued your interest. These experiences can spark ideas for research that address practical veterinary medicine issues.
• Consider Ethical Considerations : When choosing a research topic, consider ethical considerations related to animal welfare and human subjects. Ensure that your research adheres to ethical guidelines and regulations. If your research involves animal subjects, be mindful of the ethical treatment and use of animals, and obtain necessary approvals from relevant ethics committees.
• Explore Emerging Technologies and Techniques : Advancements in technology and techniques have a significant impact on veterinary medicine. Consider topics that explore the application of emerging technologies such as genomics, telemedicine, artificial intelligence, or novel diagnostic tools in veterinary practice. Research in these areas can contribute to the evolution of veterinary medicine and improve animal healthcare outcomes.
• Seek Practical Relevance and Application : Choose research topics that have practical relevance and application in the veterinary field. Look for topics that address challenges faced by veterinarians, animal owners, or the industry. Research that can provide evidence-based solutions, improve clinical practices, or enhance disease prevention and management will have a direct impact on veterinary medicine.

Selecting a suitable research paper topic is a crucial step in your journey as a veterinary medicine student. By identifying your interests, seeking guidance, staying updated with current literature, considering relevance and impact, and analyzing feasibility, you can choose a research topic that is both intellectually stimulating and practically valuable. Remember to consider ethical considerations, collaborate with peers, and explore emerging technologies. By following these expert tips, you will be well-equipped to embark on a research project that contributes to the advancement of veterinary medicine and makes a positive impact on animal health and welfare.

How to Write a Veterinary Medicine Research Paper

Writing a research paper in veterinary medicine allows you to contribute to the field, explore new knowledge, and develop critical thinking and scientific communication skills. In this section, we will guide you through the process of writing a veterinary medicine research paper, from selecting a topic to crafting a compelling paper that effectively communicates your findings.

• Define Your Research Objectives : Clearly define the objectives of your research paper. Determine what you aim to accomplish and the specific research questions you want to answer. This will provide a clear focus and direction for your study.
• Conduct a Thorough Literature Review : Begin by conducting a comprehensive literature review to gather existing knowledge and identify gaps in the research. Analyze and critically evaluate relevant studies, articles, and scientific literature to establish the context for your research.
• Refine Your Research Question : Based on your literature review, refine your research question or hypothesis. Ensure that your question is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). This will guide your research and help you stay focused.
• Design Your Study : Select an appropriate research design and methodology that aligns with your research question and objectives. Determine the sample size, data collection methods, and statistical analyses required. Ensure that your study design is rigorous and ethically sound.
• Gather and Analyze Data : Collect relevant data using appropriate research methods, whether it involves conducting experiments, surveys, interviews, or analyzing existing datasets. Ensure that your data collection is thorough, reliable, and accurately recorded. Use appropriate statistical tools to analyze your data and draw meaningful conclusions.
• Organize Your Paper : Structure your research paper in a logical and organized manner. Include sections such as the introduction, literature review, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion. Follow a clear and coherent flow of information that guides the reader through your research process.
• Write an Engaging Introduction : Start your paper with an engaging introduction that provides background information on the topic, states the research problem, and highlights the significance of your study. Clearly articulate your research objectives and hypotheses to set the stage for the rest of the paper.
• Present a Comprehensive Literature Review : Incorporate a thorough literature review in the body of your paper. Summarize and critically analyze relevant studies, theories, and findings that inform your research. Identify gaps in the literature and highlight the unique contribution of your study.
• Describe Your Methods and Results : Clearly explain the methods you employed to conduct your research and gather data. Provide sufficient detail for others to replicate your study. Present your results objectively, using appropriate tables, graphs, or figures to support your findings. Interpret the results and discuss their implications.
• Engage in a Thoughtful Discussion : In the discussion section, interpret your findings in the context of existing knowledge and theories. Discuss the implications of your results, their limitations, and any future directions for research. Address any unanswered questions and propose areas for further investigation.
• Write a Strong Conclusion : Summarize your main findings and their significance in a concise and impactful conclusion. Restate your research objectives and hypotheses, and emphasize how your study contributes to the field of veterinary medicine. Avoid introducing new information in the conclusion.
• Cite Sources Accurately : Ensure that you cite all the sources used in your research paper accurately. Follow the appropriate citation style, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago, and adhere to the specific guidelines for referencing scientific literature and other relevant sources.
• Revise and Proofread : After completing the initial draft, revise your paper for clarity, coherence, and logical flow. Check for grammatical and spelling errors, and ensure that your writing is concise and precise. Seek feedback from peers, mentors, or professors to improve the quality of your paper.

Writing a veterinary medicine research paper requires careful planning, attention to detail, and effective communication skills. By defining your research objectives, conducting a thorough literature review, designing a rigorous study, and organizing your paper coherently, you can produce a high-quality research paper. Remember to write an engaging introduction, present a comprehensive literature review, describe your methods and results accurately, engage in thoughtful discussion, and provide a strong conclusion. Cite your sources properly and revise your paper meticulously. Through this process, you will contribute to the field of veterinary medicine and advance knowledge in the domain.

iResearchNet’s Writing Services

At iResearchNet, we understand the challenges that students face when it comes to writing research papers in veterinary medicine. We are here to provide you with professional writing services that cater to your specific needs. Our team of expert writers and researchers are well-versed in the field of veterinary medicine and can assist you in producing high-quality research papers. In this section, we will outline the range of services we offer and the benefits of choosing iResearchNet for your veterinary medicine research paper needs.

• Expert Degree-Holding Writers : Our team consists of expert writers with advanced degrees in veterinary medicine and related fields. They have a deep understanding of the subject matter and can deliver well-researched and meticulously written research papers.
• Custom Written Works : We provide custom written works that are tailored to your specific requirements. Whether you need a research paper from scratch or assistance with specific sections, our writers can create unique and original content that meets your academic standards.
• In-Depth Research : Our writers conduct extensive research to gather the most relevant and up-to-date information for your research paper. They have access to reputable sources and scientific databases to ensure the accuracy and validity of the information presented in your paper.
• Custom Formatting : We understand the importance of adhering to specific formatting styles required by academic institutions. Our writers are well-versed in various citation styles, including APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian, and Harvard. They will format your paper according to the specific guidelines provided.
• Top Quality : Quality is our utmost priority. We strive to deliver research papers that meet the highest standards of academic excellence. Our writers pay attention to every detail, ensuring that your paper is well-structured, coherent, and free from grammatical errors.
• Customized Solutions : We recognize that each research paper is unique. Our writers work closely with you to understand your specific research objectives, requirements, and preferences. They can customize their approach to meet your specific needs and deliver a paper that aligns with your expectations.
• Flexible Pricing : We offer flexible pricing options to accommodate the budgetary constraints of students. Our pricing is competitive and transparent, ensuring that you receive the best value for your investment. We offer affordable rates without compromising on the quality of our services.
• Short Deadlines : We understand that students often face tight deadlines. Our team is equipped to handle urgent requests and can deliver high-quality research papers within short timeframes, even as tight as 3 hours. You can rely on us to meet your deadlines without compromising on quality.
• Timely Delivery : We prioritize timely delivery to ensure that you have sufficient time to review and submit your research paper. Our writers work diligently to complete your paper within the agreed-upon timeframe, allowing you ample time for any revisions or modifications you may require.
• 24/7 Support : We provide round-the-clock support to address any queries or concerns you may have. Our customer support team is available 24/7 to assist you with any questions regarding our services, order placement, or ongoing projects. Feel free to reach out to us at any time.
• Absolute Privacy : We understand the importance of confidentiality. Your personal information and the details of your research paper are treated with the utmost privacy and confidentiality. We adhere to strict data protection protocols to ensure the security of your information.
• Easy Order Tracking : Our user-friendly platform allows you to easily track the progress of your research paper. You can communicate with your assigned writer, provide additional instructions or clarifications, and monitor the status of your order throughout the writing process.
• Money Back Guarantee : We are committed to customer satisfaction. In the unlikely event that you are not satisfied with the quality of the research paper or the services provided, we offer a money-back guarantee. Your investment is protected, and we strive to ensure your complete satisfaction.

Choosing iResearchNet for your veterinary medicine research paper needs ensures that you receive professional, reliable, and customized writing services. Our team of expert writers, in-depth research capabilities, adherence to formatting guidelines, and commitment to quality will ensure that your research paper meets the highest academic standards. With flexible pricing options, timely delivery, 24/7 support, absolute privacy, and easy order tracking, we strive to make your experience with iResearchNet seamless and rewarding. Place your trust in us and let our expertise guide you towards academic success.

Achieve Excellence with iResearchNet!

Are you struggling with your veterinary medicine research papers? Do you find it challenging to choose the right topics, conduct in-depth research, and meet the high academic standards of your institution? Look no further! iResearchNet is here to provide you with the professional support you need to excel in your veterinary medicine studies. Our team of expert writers and researchers is ready to assist you in crafting top-quality research papers that will impress your professors and elevate your academic performance.

By choosing iResearchNet, you gain access to a range of benefits that will make your research paper writing experience smooth, efficient, and stress-free. Our team consists of highly qualified writers with expertise in veterinary medicine and related fields. They are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to tackle even the most complex research topics. Whether you need assistance in selecting research paper topics, conducting thorough research, or structuring your paper, our experts are here to guide you every step of the way.

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Online ISSN: 1943-5681

Volume 85 (2024): Issue 6 (Jun 2024)

Computed tomography findings of nasal cryptococcosis in australia (2008–2020): 12 dogs and 9 cats, the radiographic appearance of the canine femoral nutrient foramen for dogs undergoing total hip replacement is consistent, with some variations, multistrain probiotics fail to modulate the asthmatic phenotype, respiratory microbiota, and immune responses in cats, achieving temperature stability for storage of biological samples in an autodefrost freezer, ex vivo biomechanical evaluation and comparison of lateral femoro-fabella ligament suture and lateral suture with bone anchor for cranial cruciate ligament repair in cats, comparison of subarachnoid administration of low-dose bupivacaine and lidocaine in healthy goats, how to plan and provide general anesthesia for a troop of 98 hamadryas baboons ( papio hamadryas ) for contraceptive and preventative health interventions, plasma and interstitial fluid antibiotic levels of subcutaneously implanted compounded florfenicol calcium sulfate beads in new zealand white rabbits ( oryctolagus cuniculus ), timed up and go demonstrates strong interrater agreement and criterion validity as a functional test in geriatric dogs, evaluation of trypsin-like immunoreactivity, pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity, cobalamin, and folate in zoo-housed african painted dogs ( lycaon pictus ) at a north american zoological facility, radiographic analysis in thoroughbreds reveals morphological changes in healthy maturing stifle joints and possible association between subchondral lesions and femoral condyle width, validation of a bupropion, dextromethorphan, and omeprazole cocktail for simultaneous phenotyping of cytochrome p450 2b11, 2d15, and 3a12 activities in dogs, owner survey suggests cats may be undertreated for pain compared to dogs after an elective ovariohysterectomy or orchiectomy, penciclovir pharmacokinetics after oral and rectal administration of famciclovir in african elephants ( loxodonta africana ) shows that effective concentrations can be achieved from rectal administration, despite lower absorption, tissue oxygen saturation is positively correlated with oxygen delivery and cardiac output in a canine hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation model, atlantoaxial joint stabilization using patient-specific 3-d–printed drill guides and 3-d–printed titanium plates or polymethyl methacrylate is effective in toy-breed dogs, pulmonary-vein-to-pulmonary-artery ratio can be utilized to evaluate myxomatous mitral valve disease progression in dogs, saline, chlorhexidine, and povidone-iodine alone or in combination with iodine povacrylex are effective antiseptics in chickens ( gallus gallus domesticus ), comparative digital study using four methods of measurements of the tibial distal anatomical axes for determining the anatomical-mechanical angle in dogs with cranial cruciate ligament rupture, kinematic performance of a novel temporomandibular joint replacement prosthesis under bite-force conditions in dogs and cats, microvasculature of the suspensory ligament of the equine hind limb, measuring tissue oxygen saturation in the orad intestinal segment during equine colic surgery may aid in predicting the occurrence of postoperative ileus, the pharmacokinetics of single-dose oral atorvastatin and its metabolites support therapeutic use in cockatiels ( nymphicus hollandicus ), blood cardioplegia reduces intraoperative ventricular fibrillation and transfusion requirements compared to crystalloid cardioplegia in canine mitral valve repair, radiographic identification of challenging gastrointestinal tract foreign bodies: a descriptive study of how appearance varies in air versus water to aid interpretation, aims and scope .

AJVR is a monthly, peer-reviewed, veterinary medical journal owned by the American Veterinary Medical Association that publishes reports of original research and review articles in the general area of veterinary medical research.

The mission of the AJVR is to publish, in a timely manner, peer-reviewed reports of the highest-quality research that has the clear potential to enhance the health, welfare, and performance of animals and humans. The journal will maintain the highest ethical standards of scientific journalism and promote such standards among its contributors. In addition, the journal will foster global interdisciplinary cooperation in veterinary medical research.

AJVR supports the collaborative exchange of information between researchers and clinicians by publishing novel research findings that bridge the gulf between basic research and clinical practice or that help to translate laboratory research and preclinical studies to the development of clinical trials and clinical practice. The journal welcomes submission of high-quality original studies and review articles in a wide range of scientific fields, including anatomy, anesthesiology, animal welfare, behavior, clinical pathology, epidemiology, genetics, infectious disease, microbiology, molecular biology, oncology, pharmacology, pathogenic mechanisms, physiology, surgery, theriogenology, toxicology, and vaccinology. Species of interest include production animals, companion animals, equids, exotic animals, birds, reptiles, and wild and marine animals. Reports of laboratory animal studies and studies involving the use of animals as experimental models of human diseases are considered only when the study results are of demonstrable benefit to the species used in the research or to another species of veterinary interest. Other fields of interest or animal species are not necessarily excluded from consideration, but such reports must focus on novel research findings. Submitted papers must make an original and substantial contribution to the veterinary medicine knowledge base; preliminary or pilot studies are not appropriate.

Business Model

Open access

AJVR converted to a fully open access journal in June 2022 to better serve the interests of researchers and funders. Open access means that all content is freely available without charge to the user or the user’s institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other purpose permitted under the applicable License, without asking for prior permission from the publisher or the author. Under this model, authors or their research funders or institutions pay an article processing charge (APC) in order to make the article immediately free to access, download, and share anywhere in the world. Archival material (ie, pre-June 2022) is freely available. All rights are reserved in archival material.

Publication fees

The APC for AJVR is $1,250 for newly submitted articles effective January 1, 2024.

APC waivers may be granted at the Editor-in-Chief’s discretion.

License to publish

Articles published starting with the June 2022 issue are licensed for publication under the CC BY-NC Creative Commons License. Authors retain copyright in their work, which others may copy, redistribute, and transform, provided users give appropriate attribution to the original author(s) and do not use the content for commercial purposes. CC BY licensing is available upon request.

An article prepared by a U.S. federal government employee as part of the employee's official duties, or which is an official U.S. government publication, is called a "U.S. Government work" and is in the public domain in the United States. This does not mean that the article is automatically open access; rather, it means there is no copyright to transfer under U.S. law. AJVR makes such articles freely available at publication.

Editorial Policies

Peer review

AJVR uses a single anonymized review process. Reviewer identities are not, and should not be, disclosed to the authors or other reviewers. In addition, authors should not contact those whom they presume to be reviewers of their manuscripts. Each submitted manuscript is initially assessed by the Editor-in-Chief for suitability for the journal and may be assigned to an Associate Editor to initiate peer review by a minimum of 2 independent experts. When reviews are received, the Associate Editor recommends further revisions or rejection without further review, and the Editor-in-Chief, who may include additional comments, sends the decision to the authors.

Individuals should be listed as authors only if they:

• Made a substantial contribution to the conception or design of the study, acquisition of the data used in the study, or analysis and interpretation of that data, AND
• Were involved in drafting or revising the manuscript critically for important intellectual content, AND
• Will have the opportunity to approve the submitted and all subsequent versions, AND
• Agree to be accountable for the validity of the data and results.

Individuals who contributed to the study but do not meet all 4 of these criteria should not be listed as authors but should be included in the Acknowledgments section. Requests to list a working group or study group in the byline will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

• Authors are responsible for ensuring that their manuscripts are written clearly in English and formatted in accordance with these author instructions.
• Manuscripts should be carefully reviewed prior to submission for format, clarity, spelling, and grammar.
• A manuscript deemed by the editorial team to require extensive revisions prior to further consideration will be rejected with the option to resubmit after reformatting and/or editing has been performed.
• The journal does not endorse any specific editing service and provides these examples of suitable services that authors might consider: Cactus ,  Bioscience Writers , American Journal Experts , and the Nature Research Editing Service . Please note that when working with a professional language-editing service, authors should choose full medical editing with journal formatting, rather than simply proofreading, and that changes should comply with these instructions for authors.

Acknowledgments, disclosures, and funding

Authors will be required to address these 3 statements during submission. This information does not need to be included in the manuscript document.

• Acknowledgments: Identify individuals who made important contributions to the study but who do not meet the  criteria for authorship . If none , include the statement “None reported.”
• Include any conflicts of interest related to the manuscript. Include relevant financial interests (eg, ownership, employment, consultancies, honoraria, paid expert testimony, grants, patent-licensing arrangements, equity interests, and service as an officer or board member), activities, relationships, and affiliations (other than those listed on the title page of the manuscript). If none , include the statement “The authors have nothing to disclose.”
• Include the use of any artificial intelligence (AI)–assisted technology such as ChatGPT or another large language model in the writing of the manuscript or production of images. If none were used, include the statement “No AI-assisted technologies were used in the generation of this manuscript.” If an AI tool was used, the authors must be transparent in disclosing here, in the disclosures section, which AI tool was used and how the AI tool was used. AI tools cannot be listed as an author of a manuscript.
• Funding: Include all funding, other financial support, and material support obtained directly or indirectly from any third party in connection with information included in the manuscript or with the writing or publishing of the manuscript. If none , include the statement “The authors have nothing to disclose.”

Copyright permissions

• Permissions for use of figures, tables, or other content owned by another party: If your manuscript contains previously published material (text, images, tables, photographs, drawings, etc), you are responsible for providing proof of permission for reuse from the original copyright holder. At the time of submission of your manuscript to our journal, please include (1) permission for reuse of figures or tables and (2) a full citation for the previous publication. We cannot publish any previously published illustration or table without written permission from the original copyright holder.

Commercial availability, compounding, and extralabel drug use

• If a manuscript reports results of a study that involved evaluating a pharmaceutical, biologic, or other product that is not legally available in the US for use in that species, then a clear disclaimer is needed in the Methods section describing where the drug is commercially available and that the drug is neither FDA approved nor commercially available in the US.
• If compounded products/drugs were used in a study, an explanation in the Discussion section should include why the authors chose to use compounded products and what key factors should be considered by veterinarians interested in prescribing similarly prepared products.
• The Methods section should contain a complete description of the compounded products.
• Extralabel drug use must comply with the provisions of the Animal Medicinal Drug Use Clarification Act .
• Extralabel drug use was performed with owner consent and complied with provisions of AMDUCA and 21 CFR §530.
• Compounded products were prepared from bulk substances because [provide reason]. Veterinarians should adhere to compounding regulations and be aware that pharmacokinetic properties may differ between compounded and FDA-approved products.
• Compounded products were prepared from FDA-approved products because [provide reason]. Veterinarians should adhere to compounding regulations and be aware that pharmacokinetic properties may differ between compounded and FDA-approved products.

Humane animal care and use

• Research studies involving animals must have been performed in compliance with guidelines outlined in the US Animal Welfare Act , US Public Health Service Policy on the Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals , National Research Council’s Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals , or Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in Research and Teaching or in compliance with equivalent guidelines. If animals were euthanized, the method of euthanasia must be indicated in the manuscript. Methods of euthanasia must comply with the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals of jav.ma/GEA . If a method not recommended by the AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia was used, a justification for use of this method must be provided.

Institutional oversight and owner consent

• With the exception of reports of retrospective studies based solely on historical data, manuscripts describing studies that involved the use of animals, including studies that involved the use of privately owned animals (eg, animals owned by clients, staff members, students, or private entities), must include a statement that the study protocol was reviewed and approved by an appropriate oversight entity (eg, an animal care and use committee or institutional review board) or was performed in compliance with institutional or other (eg, governmental or international) guidelines for research on animals.
• Prospective studies that involved privately owned animals must also include a statement indicating that informed owner consent was obtained.
• Research involving human subjects, including surveys of human subjects, must include a statement that the research was performed under appropriate institutional review board oversight.

NIH Public Access Policy

AJVR  is in compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy and with the open access policies of other research funders.

Patient confidentiality and the right to privacy

• Authors have an obligation to protect the personal privacy of patients and clients and to maintain the confidentiality of patient-client information.
• For any manuscript containing patient information (eg, patient descriptions, photographs, or pedigrees) that would allow specific animals or their owners to be identified, the authors must obtain a signed statement of informed consent to publish the information (in print and online) from the owners. Generally, such consent should include an opportunity for the owner to read the manuscript to be submitted for publication. If necessary, nonessential identifying data can be removed, unless clinically or epidemiologically important. However, identifying data may not be altered or falsified.
• Cropping or altering photographs to remove nonessential identifying information is acceptable, so long as the photographs are not otherwise altered. Patient identifiers may not appear in photographs.
• Authors must also obtain informed consent to publish from any identifiable person appearing in photographs. Importantly, these guidelines also apply to any materials (eg, text, photographs, or videos) submitted for posting as supplementary materials.

Prior publication

• Manuscripts are considered with the understanding that they have not been published previously and will not be submitted for publication elsewhere while under consideration by AJVR .
• Manuscripts submitted to the journal following or prior to presentation at a scientific meeting or publication of preliminary findings elsewhere, such as in abstract form, will be considered for publication. Publication of abstracts and posting of slides or videos of the scientific presentation in a print or online conference proceedings is acceptable.
• Posting preprints of research manuscripts in progress or in submission on a public server is not considered prior publication and is also acceptable. Preprints are defined as research manuscripts that have not undergone formal peer review by a journal. Preprints may also be posted at any time during the review process.
• Authors should disclose preprint posting, including DOI, URL link, and license details, at the time of manuscript submission or during the review process. Authors are requested to update any prepublication versions with a link to the final published article.
• Media coverage of presentations at scientific meetings will not jeopardize consideration, but direct release of results beyond what was included in the abstract through press releases or news media briefings may preclude consideration of the manuscript by this journal.

Plagiarism Policy

At the time of submission, similarity detection software (iThenticate) is used. If the similarity score is less than 25%, no further action is taken. If it’s over 25%, iThenticate is run again with title, author list, affiliations, methods, and references hidden from the check. If it’s still over 25%, authors are informed of the findings and directed to revise the language or provide a reference if the text is recycled from one of their previously published articles.

For Librarians

AJVR ceased print production in June 2022 and became fully open access as an online-only journal. You and your patrons may now access AJVR online, which includes copyedited, typeset articles before they are assembled into an issue as well as all online content from 2000 to the present.

One of the AVMA’s strategic initiatives for the journal is the digitization of pre-2000 content ( AJVR was launched in 1940). In 2024, you will have free access to the digital archive of the 1990s JAVMAs, and it is our plan to digitize 1 decade of archival content each of the next 3 years going back to the 1970s. For further information about the archive digitization, please see Editor-in-Chief Dr. Lisa Fortier’s November 2023 editorial .

AVMA is committed to the longterm preservation of all content published in our journals, whether open access or subscribed ( JAVMA only). We collaborate with digital archive provider CLOCKSS, a sustainable, geographically distributed dark archive that builds on the LOCKSS enabling technology.

If your institution is interested in negotiating a “Read and Publish” agreement with AVMA, whereby for a single annual fee your faculty, students, and staff gain free access to JAVMA and waiver of open access article processing charges (CC BY-NC license), please contact Editor-in-Chief Dr. Lisa Fortier at [email protected] for further information.

AJVR is owned and published by the AVMA.

How to Submit

General information

To submit manuscripts, please visit https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ajvr . Note, an article processing charge of $1,250 will apply to accepted manuscripts. For author and presubmission inquiries, please contact [email protected] . For details on AVMA news, conferences, or other AVMA information, please visit avma.org .

Submission checklist—ensure the following:

• If accepted, the authors agree to pay an open access article processing charge of $1,250.
• Email address.
• Full postal address.
• The manuscript has been checked for spelling and grammar.
• Abbreviations and preferred pharmacologic and pharmacokinetics terminology, pulmonary and respiratory terminology, and radiographic projection naming are used in accordance with journal guidelines .
• All references mentioned in the reference list are cited in the text.
• Footnotes are not used (review the instructions on citing special materials for information on citing materials previously included as footnotes).
• Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources.
• Journal policies detailed in this guide have been reviewed.
• Manuscript.
• Figures (include relevant captions), with the same figure names (eg, Figure 1) as used in the manuscript.
• Supplementary files (where applicable).
• Why is this study important? (2 or 3 sentences)
• What did you find? (2or 3 sentences)
• Why is this study of wide interest? (2 or 3 sentences)
• Is the manuscript for resident credentialling or promotion?
• Suggested 6-10 reviewers with their names and email addresses.

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Instructions for Journal Award Nominations

       .

The annual AVMA Journal Awards recognize contributions of students, interns, and residents for manuscripts published in JAVMA or AJVR . Nominations are accepted year-round.

Qualifications

• Nominee is the first or corresponding author
• Work supporting the manuscript was performed when the nominee was a student, intern, or resident
• Manuscripts are assessed for potential impact and clinical relevance, and winners are selected by an Associate Review Board Panel

Nomination Instructions

• Nominations close on March 15 for the preceding year
• Name of nominee
• Nominee category (student, intern, or resident)
• Attestation sentence confirming that the work was done by the nominee
• Manuscript title and name of the journal ( JAVMA or AJVR )
• Nominee’s current email address
• Winners will be announced during the AVMA Annual Convention
• Certificate of achievement
• Cash prize of $500
• Extensive social media exposure
• A waiver of open access fees ($1,250 value) for each winner’s next paper in JAVMA or AJVR  

Click on an issue cover below to read more. For information about images on the cover, contact Stacey Geelan at [email protected] .

May 2022 AJVR Vol. 83 - Issue 5

This month’s cover image displays a multi-omics approach for machine learning (ML) in veterinary medicine. The last decade has brought tremendous growth in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in veterinary medicine. This has been accompanied by rapid evolution in -omics technologies in veterinary practice. With the use of ML technologies, the combination of these disparate -omics datatypes, like genomics, image features (radiomics), and radiation dose distribution features (dosiomics), offers the potential for a deeper understanding of diseases, their detection and expression, and better treatments for them. This image was obtained as part of the “Currents in One Health Study.” Am J Vet Res . 2022;83(5):385–392. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.22.03.0038

April 2022 AJVR Vol. 83 - Issue 4

The cover illustration depicts the oromaxillofacial region as a potential and promising model for a ‘One Health’ global approach in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Translating discoveries of regenerative therapeutics in veterinary species to novel, effective human therapies using a One Health approach provides a fundamental link between basic biomedical research and medical clinical practice, with the goal of developing strategies for curing or preventing disease and ameliorating pain and suffering in companion animals and humans alike. Am J Vet Res . 2022;83(4):291–297. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.21.12.0208

March 2022 AJVR Vol. 83 - Issue 3

This month’s cover images show blood smears from a Jack Russell Terrier presented with very severe pulmonic stenosis (peak systolic trans-stenotic = 340 mmHg). On the blood smear before valvuloplasty (A), severe schistocytosis (arrowheads) and polychromasia (asterisk) are present, suggestive of regenerative hemolytic anemia due to abnormal blood flow. The schistocytosis completely resolved 2 months after pulmonary balloon valvuloplasty (B). This study concluded that poikilocytosis (schistocytosis, acanthocytosis, keratocytosis) is common in dogs with congenital ventricular outflow tract obstruction associated with hemolytic anemia in a few cases with severe or very severe pulmonic stenosis. These results indicate the importance of serial blood smear analysis from canine patients with severe or very severe ventricular outflow tract obstruction. The images were obtained as part of the following study: Passavin P, Chetboul V, Poissonnier C, et al. Red-blood cell abnormalities occur in dogs with congenital ventricular outflow tract obstruction. Am J Vet Res . 2022;83(3):198–204. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.21.11.0188

February 2022 AJVR Vol. 83 - Issue 2

This month's cover image shows the bacterial pathobiome map of canine oral health and disease. Dogs were assigned to one of four different stages of periodontal disease and their microbiome was analyzed. Several bacterial species were identified that were significantly associated with the different stages of periodontitis. This pathobiome map can provide a guidance to veterinarians to understand their patient’s periodontal microbiome and health status. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Niemiec BA, Gawor J, Tang S, Prem A, Krumbeck JK. The bacteriome of the oral cavity in healthy dogs and dogs with periodontal disease. Am J Vet Res . 2022;83(1):50–58. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.21.02.0027

January 2022 AJVR Vol. 83 - Issue 1

This month's cover images are shear-wave elastographic images of the color map and propagation map of the mandibular lymph node from a healthy adult beagle to measure shear-wave velocities (SWVs). This study concluded that SWE could be used to non¬invasively evaluate changes in the elastic properties of lymphatic tissues. Ultimately, SWE could be applied to increase the diagnostic accuracy of tumor staging. Intra- and interobserver reliability were excellent suggesting that SWV of lymph nodes could be used in practice settings.

The images were obtained as part of the following study: Kang YR, Lee SH, Seo IM, et al. Comparison of shear-wave velocities obtained with shear-wave elastography of various peripheral lymph nodes in healthy Beagles. Am J Vet Res . 2021;82(12):981–987. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.82.12.981

December 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 12

This month's cover (top photomontage) depicts a series of sodium fluorescein angiographic images exhibiting various degrees of vascular abnormalities (dye leakage) present within the iris of diabetic canines. A standard color, near-infrared, indocyanine green and sodium fluorescein angiographic image of an age-matched control is also shown below. Venular dilation, in the absence of dye leakage, is illustrated. The presence and severity of vascular changes (dye leakage) noted in diabetic canines appear to be associated with disease duration and blood glucose regulation. Anterior segment angiography could be employed to identify the severity of these vascular disruptions present, in addition to, monitoring disease progression and potential response to therapeutic interventions. These images were obtained as part of the following study: Pirie CG, Shelnutt LM, Langlois DK. Assessment of iris vasculature abnormalities in dogs with diabetes mellitus. Am J Vet Res 2021;82(10):829–839. doi: 10.2460/ajvr.82.10.829

November 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 11

This month's cover images are micro-CT and photomicrographs of proximal sesamoid bones (PSB) of Thoroughbred racehorses following catastrophic PSB fracture. Osteophyte size at the apical and basilar margins was scored and found to positively correlate with accrued total career high-speed furlongs and with catastrophic PSB fracture. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Cresswell EN, Ruspi BD, Wollman CW, et al. Determination of correlation of proximal sesamoid bone osteoarthritis with high-speed furlong exercise and catastrophic sesamoid bone fracture in Thoroughbred racehorses. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:467–477.

October 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 10

This month's cover image is a photograph of multiple cross sections of the prostate gland from a canine cadaver in which microwave ablation with cooling urethral perfusion was performed in 2 zones (white outline and arrow). The median percentage of prostate gland ablation for this and 7 other cadavers in this group was 73%, and urethral mucosal injury was limited. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Traverson M, Lin S, Kendall A, et al. Investigation of the use of microwave ablation with and without cooling urethral perfusion for thermal ablation of the prostate gland in canine cadavers. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:395–404.

September 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 9

This month's cover image is a composite photograph of the bottom of an equine foot that was shod with 5 different types of shoes to determine which one provided the best hoof protection and traction for horses on paved surfaces. Results suggest that shoes coated with a thin layer of tungsten carbide (Panel E), and plastic-steel composite shoes (Panel F) offered the best protection and traction. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Wang P, Takawira C, Taguchi T, et al. Assessment of the effect of horseshoes with and without traction adaptations on the gait kinetics on nonlame horses during a trot on a concrete runway. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:292–301.

August 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 8

Echocardiographic image obtained from a modified apical 4-chamber view used to measure right atrial longitudinal strain (RALS) indices (left), and curves obtained from 120 healthy dogs (right). The right atrial wall is divided into 6 color-coded segments, and the colors correspond to the strain curves, with the average color in white.The authors concluded that age should be considered in the interpretation of RALS indices in clinical settings. Morita T, Nakamura K, Osuga T, et al. Repeatability, reproducibility, and reference intervals for indices of right atrial longitudinal strain derived from speckle-tracking echocardiography in healthy dogs. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:274–279.

July 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 7

This month's cover image is a photograph of a mature (> 18 months old) domestic laying hen ( Gallus domesticus ) during ovariectomy performed with a vessel and tissue–sealing device through a left lateral celiotomy. Notice the ovary with multiple follicles and yolks of various sizes. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Sullivan JL, Wakamatsu N, Yin J-H et al. Assessment of a vessel and tissue–sealing device for ovariectomy in chickens to evaluate the potential application of the procedure to other avian species. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:310–317.

June 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 6

This month's cover image is a photograph depicting explants harvested from fibrocartilage on the dorsal surface of the deep digital flexor tendon of the forelimb of a horse. To obtain these explants, the navicular bone was dissected from the foot en bloc, and the deep digital flexor tendon segment directly opposing the navicular bone was harvested with aseptic technique. The explants were obtained with a 4-mm biopsy punch. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Sullivan SN, Cole SL, Stewart MC, et al. Ex vivo effects of corticosteroids on equine deep digital flexor and navicular fibrocartilage explant cell viability. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:125–131.

May 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 5

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph depicting the results of immunohistochemical staining for insulin expression in isolated canine insulinoma cells after 48 hours of culture. Insulin content (red stain) varies among individual insulinoma cells (arrowheads). Intact insulinoma cells approximately 10 µm in diameter are enlarged after processing with the cytocentrifuge. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Suwitheechon O, Schermerhorn T. Evaluation of the expression of hexokinase I, glucokinase, and insulin by canine insulinoma cells maintained in short-term culture. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:110–117.

April 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 4

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a section of placentome obtained at 80 days of gestation from a pregnant yearling Katahdin ewe that was experimentally inoculated with 4 X 107 TCID50 of a noncytopathic bovine viral diarrhea virus type lb isolate (NY-I strain), intranasally, at 65 days of gestation. The chorioallantois is lined by plump trophoblastic epithelium that contains multifocal areas of intracytoplasmic immunoreactivity for bovine viral diarrhea virus antigen (red-stained tissue). The image was obtained as part of the following study: Lear A, Pohler K, Sula M-JM, et al. Alterations in pregnancy-associated glycoprotein concentrations of pregnant sheep experimentally infected with bovine viral diarrhea virus. Am J Vet Res 2021;82:63–70.

March 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 3

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a section of liver tissue from a dog that was euthanized because of development of clinical signs of liver failure 12 weeks after being treated with lomustine (75 mg/m2, PO, q 21 d for 5 doses). Notice that the portal vein profiles are diminished, prominent pigmented macrophages are present in the portal tract and adjacent parenchyma, and persistent biliary hyperplasia is evident. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Dedeaux AM, Flesner BK, Reinhart JM, et al. Biochemical, functional, and histopathologic characterization of lomustine-induced liver injury in dogs. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:810–820.

February 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 2

This month's cover image is a laparoscopic image obtained during microwave ablation of the ovary in a healthy dog. The dog was positioned in dorsolateral recumbency for the procedure, and laparoscopic forceps were used to grasp the proper ligament and elevate and stabilize the ovary. The microwave ablation probe was placed percutaneously through the ventrolateral aspect of the abdominal wall at an orientation parallel to the long axis of the ovary after complete dissection of the ovarian bursa. Notice how dissection of the ovarian bursa improved the visibility of the ovary and facilitated correct positioning of the probe in the central longitudinal axis of the ovary. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Verpaalen VD, Case JB, Dark MJ, et al. Feasibility and efficacy of ultrasonographic and laparoscopic guidance for microwave ablation of clinically normal canine ovaries. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:747–754.

January 2021 AJVR Vol. 82 - Issue 1

This month's cover features color-coded transverse abdominal MRI images illustrating hepatic apparent diffusion coefficient and hepatic fat fraction in a healthy neutered male cat (top) and a neutered male cat that underwent 40 weeks of dietary intervention to achieve and maintain a body condition score of 7/9 (bottom). Notice the bright violet component in the liver and increased subcutaneous and visceral fat tissue in the bottom cat. The color scale bar depicts approximate percentage fat. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Steger G-L, Salesov E, Richter H, et al. Evaluation of the changes in hepatic apparent diffusion coefficient and hepatic fat fraction in healthy cats during body weight gain. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:796–803.

December 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 12

This months cover image is a perfusion CT image of the abdomen of a healthy Beagle. A region of interest (dotted circle) has been placed over the body of the pancreas, and blood flow is expressed as a color map. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Park S, Jung J-W, Je H, et al. Effect of slice thickness on computed tomographic perfusion analysis of the pancreas in healthy dogs. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:732–738.

November 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 11

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a section of neoplastic lymph node from a dog illustrating expression of luteinizing hormone receptors, as determined with an immunohistochemical, LH receptor–specific stain and hematoxylin counterstain. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Ettinger AM, Gust SK, Kutzler MA. Luteinizing hormone receptor expression by nonneoplastic and neoplastic canine lymphocytes. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:572–577.

October 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 10

This month's cover image consists of a series of median plane T2-weighted spin-echo magnetic resonance images and corresponding anatomic sections of cervical intervertebral disks in cadaveric cats. From left to right, the images illustrate increasing stages of intervertebral disk degeneration. The images were obtained as part of the following study: Alisauskaite N, Bitterli T, Kircher PR, et al. Evaluation of agreement and correlation of results obtained with MRI-based and macroscopic observation-based grading schemes when used to assess intervertebral disk degeneration in cats. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:309–316.

September 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 9

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph depicting qualitative histologic scoring of neutrophil infiltration (in this instance, rare neutrophils, or a score of 1 on a scale from 1 to 5) at local injection sites in equids after SC administration of ReqIL-4, ReqIL-8, or a negative control solution, each mixed with a biopolymer carrier. A 6-mm-diameter biopsy punch was used to collect cutaneous and subcutaneous tissues, including the biopolymer plug, at the injection sites. The biopolymer is pink, and the host tissue is saffron-yellow to orange. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Godbout M, Vargas A, Hélie P, et al. Use of a biopolymer delivery system to investigate the influence of interleukin-4 on recruitment of neutrophils in equids. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:344–354.

August 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 8

This month's cover image is a lateromedial radiographic view illustrating locations of soft tissue attachments in the tarsal region of horses. Illustrated locations represent composite findings based on dissection and radiographic imaging of 8 hind limbs from healthy adult horses. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Casillas JM, Jacobs CC, Manfredi JM. Radiographic localization of the attachments of soft tissue structures in the tarsal region of horses. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:406–415.

July 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 7

This month's cover features an endoscopic image of the coelomic cavity in a male bearded dragon ( Pogona vitticeps ). The endoscope was inserted in a cranial direction through an incision just lateral to the umbilicus. In this image, the gallbladder can be seen between lobes of the liver. The location of the skin incision for the ventral approach was chosen to avoid the ventral abdominal vein and pelvic veins. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Frei S, Sanchez-Migallon Guzman D, Kass PH, et al. Evaluation of a ventral and a left lateral approach to coelioscopy in bearded dragons ( Pogona vitticeps ). Am J Vet Res 2020;81:267–275.

June 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 6

This month's cover image is a transverse computed tomographic image of the cranial abdominal region in a healthy dog showing placement of regions of interest for evaluation of perfusion of the pancreas (T1 and T2) and liver (T3 and T4). Colors indicate the scale from the lowest (blue) to highest (red) amount of perfusion. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Kloer TB, Rao S, Twedt DC, et al. Computed tomographic evaluation of pancreatic perfusion in healthy dogs. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:131–138.

May 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 5

This month's cover image is a 5-chamber view obtained by use of multidetector computed tomography of the left side of the heart in a healthy adult hound-type dog. The lumen of the left atrium is shaded pink. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Owens EJ, LeBlanc NL, Scollan KF. Comparison of left and right atrial volumes determined by two- and three-dimensional echocardiography with those determined by multidetector computed tomography for healthy dogs. Am J Vet Res 2020;81:33–40.

April 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 4

This month's cover image is an endoscopic image (with the endoscope positioned in a caudal-to-cranial direction) of the abdomen of a rabbit obtained during evaluation of working space achieved with CO2 insufflation to an intra-abdominal pressure of 8 mm Hg. The diaphragm and liver are shown. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Kabakchiev CM, zur Linden AR, Singh A, et al. Effects of intra-abdominal pressure on laparoscopic working space in domestic rabbits ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ). Am J Vet Res 2020;81:77–83.

March 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 3

This month's cover image is a contrast-enhanced ultrasonographic image of the left kidney of a Beagle obtained at the time of peak enhancement. Notice the placement of 3 regions of interest (black circles) in the renal cortex and 2 regions of interest (white circles) in the renal medulla. Each region of interest area was 0.11 cm 2 . The image was obtained as part of the following study: Hwang J, Kang K, Kang J, et al. Effect of catheter diameter and injection rate of flush solution on renal contrast-enhanced ultrasonography with perfluorobutane in dogs. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:825–831.

February 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 2

This month's cover image is a dorsal-plane, maximum-intensity CT image, displayed in a bone window, of a cat after injection of contrast medium into a popliteal lymph node. Notice the caudal extent of thoracic duct branching. No other abnormalities were identified during evaluation of baseline CT lymphangiography images. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Dickerson VM, Grimes JA, Secrest SA, et al. Abdominal lymphatic drainage after thoracic duct ligation and cisterna chyli ablation in clinically normal cats. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:885–890.

January 2020 AJVR Vol. 81 - Issue 1

This month's cover image consists of a 3-D model (left) and a heat map (right) illustrating deviations from the articular surface of the radius of a feline cadaver. The 3-D model illustrates positive differences between models created by use of laser-scanned images and images obtained with CT in a transverse orientation. For the heat map, negative deviations (light to dark blue) indicate that the CT model overestimated the articular surface, and positive deviations (yellow, orange, or red) indicate that the CT model underestimated the articular surface. The image was part of the following study: Webster CE, Marcellin-Little DJ, Koballa EM, et al. Evaluation of the geometric accuracy of computed tomography and microcomputed tomography of the articular surface of the distal portion of the radius of cats. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:976–984.

December 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 12

This month's cover image is a photograph of the ground surface of a bovine hind foot with toe-tip necrosis. The photograph was obtained during application of a static load of 3 kN, and a region-growing technique involving a stylus and tablet was used to process the image to highlight regions of white line separation (yellow areas). The image was part of the following study: Johnston JD, Eichhorn DJR, Kontulainen SA, et al. Investigation of white line separation under load in bovine claws with and without toe-tip necrosis. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:736–742.

November 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 11

This month's cover image is an illustration of the cranial aspect of a bovine stifle joint depicting placement of a prosthesis for extracapsular stabilization in cattle with cranial cruciate ligament rupture. For this prosthesis, 800-lb-test monofilament nylon leader line would be threaded through bone tunnels and secured with three 316 stainless steel crimping sleeves on the lateral aspect of the joint. The illustration was created as part of the following study: Lozier JW, Niehaus AJ, Hinds CA, et al. Investigation of a novel prosthesis technique for extracapsular stabilization of cranial cruciate ligament-deficient stifle joints in adult cattle. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:779–786. ©The Ohio State University, Tim Vojt.

October 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 10

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a section of neoplastic lymph node from a dog illustrating expression of luteinizing hormone receptors, as determined with an immunohistochemical, LH receptor–specific stain and hematoxylin counterstain. The image was obtained as part of the following: Ettinger AM, Gust SK, Kutzler MA. Luteinizing hormone receptor expression by nonneoplastic and neoplastic canine lymphocytes. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:572–577.

September 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 9

This month's cover image is a volume rendering of the intracranial arteries in a 21-month-old 5-kg mixed-breed dog with idiopathic epilepsy; the image was obtained in the dorsal plane by use of 1.5-T, 3-D, time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography. Bilaterally, the caudal communicating artery (green) and rostral cerebellar artery (pink) overlap the internal carotid artery (blue), which is located ventral to the caudal communicating artery. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Ishikawa C, Ito D, Tanaka N, et al. Use of three-dimensional time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography at 1.5 Tesla to evaluate the intracranial arteries of 39 dogs with idiopathic epilepsy. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:480–489.

August 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 8

This month's cover features an echocardiographic image obtained during longitudinal strain analysis in a dog with tricuspid valve dysplasia. The image shows a left apical 4-chamber image that was analyzed with 2-D speckle tracking echocardiography software. The left ventricle is outlined in red by the software. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Santarelli G, Toaldo MB, Bouvard J, et al. Variability among strain variables derived from two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography in dogs by use of various software. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:347–357.

July 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 7

This month's cover image represents a propagation map of the right liver lobe of a healthy dog obtained by means of 2-D shear wave elastography in elasticity mode. Notice the consistent parallel contour lines. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Tamura M, Ohta H, Nisa K, et al. Evaluation of liver and spleen stiffness of healthy dogs by use of two-dimensional shear wave elastography. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:378–384.

June 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 6

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a skin sample obtained from the incision site of a koi 2 weeks after coelioscopy. The image depicts poor healing; the epithelium is incomplete, and the wound surface is partially covered by a layer of serofibrinous crust and cellular debris. The sides of the incision have separated, and severe pyogranulomatous inflammation extends transmurally through the section, which severely disrupts the normal tissue architecture. Suture material is visible. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Stevens BN, Sanchez-Migallon Guzman D, Phillips KL, et al. Evaluation of diagnostic coelioscopy in koi ( Cyprinus carpio ). Am J Vet Res 2019;80:221–229.

May 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 5

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a portal region in a section of a hepatic biopsy sample from a cat with lymphocytic cholangitis. Bile duct proliferation has been made obvious through immunohistochemical staining of proliferative epithelial progenitors. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Chandler AM, Center SA, Randolph JF, et al. Reference limits for hepatic bile duct-to-arteriole and bile duct-to-portal tract ratios in healthy cats. Am J Vet Res 2019;80:15–23.

April 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 4

This month's cover image is a representative 3-D reconstruction of the entire renal volume in a healthy dog. The image was created by combining CT attenuation values of the entire renal volume (including renal parenchyma) in all transverse planes. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Wallimann M, Richter H, Sieber-Ruckstuhl NS, et al. Influence of injection protocol and measurement technique on computed tomographic assessment of glomerular filtration rate in healthy Beagles. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:1298–1305.

March 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 3

This month's cover image was generated during finite element modeling depicting the minimum principal strain at the bone-pin interface for a 2 transfixation pin–cast construct applied to an equine forelimb. The insert represents a higher magnification of the bone-pin interface outlined by the white line in the main image. Notice that local bone strain at the bone-pin interface was quite high, reaching approximately –15,000 microstrain. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Thomas KL, Carmalt JL, Burnett WD, et al. In vitro mechanical evaluation of three transfixation pin–cast constructs applied to equine forelimbs. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:1287–1297.

February 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 2

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of equine lamellar tissue following extracorporeal perfusion of the limb with lipopolysaccharide. The section was immunostained for total (active and latent) matrix metalloproteinase-9 (brown). Notice the moderate reaction in fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and suprabasal epidermal cells and intense reaction in basal epidermal cells. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Patan-Zugaj B, Gauff FC, Egerbacher M, et al. Endotoxin-induced changes of type VII collagen–cleaving matrix metalloproteinases in lamellar tissue of extracorporeally perfused equine limbs. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:986–994.

January 2019 AJVR Vol. 80 - Issue 1

This month's cover image is a scanning electron micrograph of the surface of a cast stainless steel tibial plateau leveling osteotomy plate that had been explanted from a dog. Notice the circular areas of corrosion that can be seen between scratches on the surface of the plate. The image was part of the following study: Sprecher CM, Milz S, Suter T, et al. Retrospective analysis of corrosion and ion release from retrieved cast stainless steel tibia plateau leveling osteotomy plates in dogs with and without peri-implant osteosarcoma. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:970–979.

December 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 12

This month's cover image is a sagittal proton-density fast spin echo image of the supraspinatus tendon of a nonlame 2-year-old sexuallty intact male Beagle. Notice that the collagen-dense fibers of the superficial and deep margins of the supraspinatus tendon have a hypointense signal, whereas the thick water-rich central substance has a hyperintense signal. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Pownder SL, Caserto BG, Hayashi K, et al. Magnetic resonance imaging and histologic features of the supraspinatus tendon in nonlame dogs. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:836–844.

November 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 11

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of cultured primary canine aortic endothelial cells. Endothelial cells were grown to confluency and fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde, then stained for vascular endothelial–cadherin with rabbit polyclonal anti-CD144 antibody. Fluorescent-labeled goat anti-rabbit lgG was used as the secondary antibody, and cell nuclei were stained with blue fluorescent bisbenzimide stain. The image was obtained as part of the following study: König ML, Lettry SC, Marti E, et al. Validation of a human angiopoietin-2 ELISA for measurement of angiopoietin-2 concentrations in canine plasma samples and supernatant of primary canine aortic endothelial cell cultures. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:803–810.

October 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 10

This month's cover image is a photograph of the left eye of a 24-year-old female horse that was obtained during anterior segment indocyanine green angiography. The image was obtained 18 seconds after injection of indocyanine green and illustrates filling of the radial iris veins. The image was part of the following study: Pirie CG, LoPinto AJ, Tenney WA. Comparison of angiographic dyes and injection techniques for ocular anterior segment angiography in horses. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:562–567.

September 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 9

This month's cover image is a color-coded map created by postprocessing of delayed gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance images of the distal sagittal medial midcondylar region of the second phalanx of a horse obtained after injection of gadolinium into the dorsal recess of the distal interphalangeal joint. Different colors represent different cartilage relaxation times, with light green and blue pixels representing articular cartilage. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Bischofberger AS, Fürst AE, Torgerson PR, et al. Use of a 3-Telsa magnet to perform delayed gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of the distal interphalangeal joint of horses with and without naturally occurring osteoarthritis. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:287–298.

August 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 8

This month's cover image consists of photomicrographs of representative cytologic preparations of neutrophils isolated from equine blood samples and cultured for 12 hours with (top) and without (bottom) lipopolysaccharide (1 µg/mL). Treatment with LPS delayed apoptosis of neutrophils for up to 24 hours. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Anderson SL, Townsend HGG, Singh B. Role of toll-like receptor 4 and caspase-3, -8, and -9 in lipopolysaccharide-induced delay of apoptosis in equine neutrophils. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:424–432.

July 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 7

This month's cover image is a transverse CT image of a clinically normal Holstein calf. The calf was anesthetized and received an IV injection of iodinated contrast medium, with dynamic CT scanning of the head initiated at the time of contrast medium injection. The image was created by merging a perfusion CT color map of cerebral blood flow with a conventional CT image of the same slice, and was obtained as part of the following study: Kishimoto M, Kushida K, Yamada K. Perfusion computed tomographic measurements of cerebral blood flow variables in live Holstein calves. Am J Vet Res 2018;79:177–180.

June 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 6

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph depicting the distribution of Helicobacter -like organisms on the mucosal surface of the gastric antrum in a healthy dog. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Suárez-Esquivel M, Alfaro-Alarcón A, Guzmán-Verri C, et al. Analysis of the association between density of Helicobacter spp and gastric lesions in dogs. Am J Vet Res 2017;78:1414–1420.

May 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 5

This month's cover image is a photograph from the caudal aspect of a canine cadaver larynx after bilateral ventriculocordectomy performed via ventral laryngotomy. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Regier PJ, McCarthy TC, Monnet E. Effect of bilateral ventriculocordectomy via ventral laryngotomy on laryngeal airway resistance in larynges of canine cadavers. Am J Vet Res 2017;78:1444–1448.

April 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 4

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of a tissue section obtained from a horse 120 days after unicortical ostectomy of the third metacarpal bone and filling of the defect with a castor oil polyurethane polymer containing calcium carbonate. There is a degenerating clot on the bone tissue in a pore of the polymer and focal areas of bone matrix. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Nóbrega FS, Selim MB, Arana-Chavez VE, et al. Histologic and immunohistochemical evaluation of biocompatibility of castor oil polyurethane polymer with calcium carbonate in equine bone tissue. Am J Vet Res 2017;78:1210–1214.

March 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 3

This month's cover image is a photomicrograph of equine hematopoietic cells after culturing for B-cell differentiation and immunostaining with antibodies against B-cell signature transcription factor E2A/TCF3 (green) and cell surface molecule CD19 (red); nuclei were stained blue with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Schwab UE, Tallmadge RL, Matychak MB, et al. Effects of autologous stromal cells and cytokines on differentiation of equine bone marrow–derived progenitor cells. Am J Vet Res 2017;78:1215–1228.

February 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 2

This month's cover features an endoscopic image of the upper respiratory tract of a horse after nasopharyngeal administration of contrast medium. The contrast medium is visible on the surfaces of the nasopharynx, laryngopharynx, and larynx. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Colbath AC, Valdés-Martinez A, Leise BS, et al. Evaluation of two methods for topical application of contrast medium to the pharyngeal and laryngeal region of horses. Am J Vet Res 2017;78:1098–1103.

January 2018 AJVR Vol. 79 - Issue 1

This month's cover features a photomicrograph of a cytologic preparation of bone marrow from a healthy juvenile female New Zealand White rabbit showing large granulocyte precursor cells. The myeloid precursor cells are 2 to 3 times the diameter of mature heterophils. The image was obtained as part of the following study: Riedel RM, de Matos R, Schaefer DMW. Bone marrow cell composition and morphology in healthy juvenile female New Zealand White rabbits ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ). Am J Vet Res 2017;78:910–918.

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Veterinary Research

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Veterinary Research is an open access journal that publishes high quality and novel research and review articles focusing on all aspects of infectious diseases and host-pathogen interaction in animals. Food animals, companion animals, equines, wild animals (if the infections are of zoonotic interest and/or in relation with domestic animals), laboratory animals and animal models of human infections are considered. Studies on zoonotic and emerging infections are highly appreciated.

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Featured Article: STING-dependent trained immunity contributes to host defense against Clostridium perfringens infection via mTOR signaling

Featured Article: Evaluation of Th1/Th2, regulatory cytokines and transcriptional factor FoxP3 in sheep immunized with a partially protective and non-protective vaccine and challenged with Fasciola hepatica

Featured Article: Interactions between avian viruses and skin in farm birds

Featured Article: Porcine cis-acting lnc-CAST positively regulates CXCL8 expression through histone H3K27ac

Featured Article: The haemagglutinin–neuraminidase protein of velogenic Newcastle disease virus enhances viral infection through NF-κB-mediated programmed cell death

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Thematic series Modelling in animal health: mechanisms and data from the genome to the environment and control-related behaviour  Edited by Dr Pauline Ezanno, Dr Carolyn Gates, Dr Elisabeta Vergu and Dr Stefan Widgren

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Veterinary medicine is a broad area of study, so there are many potential issues you can base your dissertation or thesis on. You may want to consider veterinary science comparable to human health care, such as laboratory animal medicine, animal welfare, and law so that you can come up with an impactful veterinary dissertation topic.

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Veterinary Dissertation Topics and Ideas

• Animals used for fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC)
• Necropsy’s significance in veterinary medicine
• The value of veterinarians to the retail industry
• Examination of contemporary pet vaccinations
• Why not crocodiles or zebras? – investigating contemporary quirks in pet selection
• Investigating the components of natural animal feeds as the pet food business transitions to natural
• Rural locations with poor veterinary care: cause and remedies
• Fear or the dominance theory? – investigating the behavioural issues with dogs
• The best remedies for thunderstorm anxiety
• Why do the majority of pets have this phobia? Is it treatable?
• Is it a myth that animals act poorly because they want to rule the pack?
• Why do owners of sick animals need to be on guard?
• Environmental influences on chickens’ egg-laying productivity
• When do some chickens produce more eggs than others? What are the ideal circumstances to maintain their high levels of productivity?
• Cardiovascular changes in canine leishmaniasis
• Relevant clinical alterations in breast cancer in stage 3 females
• Cancer patients’ nutritional needs and metabolic changes are managed
• Review of the literature on alternative methods for treating canine atopic dermatitis
• Analysis of the primary epidemiological traits present in a buck with a breast tumour
• Cost-benefit analysis of supplemental mineral feeding to beef cattle
• Little ones frequently experience heart disorders
• Breast cancer reconstruction procedures for female dogs and cats
• Laws and public education about animal abuse
• An outline of the veterinary nurse’s responsibility in stopping owner maltreatment of animals
• Following surgery, the animals get rehabilitation
• What part does the veterinary nurse play in addressing the psychological effects of animal abuse? Is there any way to make it better?
• Illnesses that are extremely contagious and harm domestic animals
• Veterinary students are taught about public health as part of their training
• Treatment of sporty horses with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications
• Effectiveness of homoeopathic medication in controlling ticks in dairy cattle
• A case study of bitches treated at the university veterinary hospital for breast cancer
• Study of sporotrichosis and visceral leishmaniasis notifications in the CCZ
• Investigation of the anaesthesia procedure death rate in tiny animals undergoing surgery
• Ways to improve how domestic animals are treated in the public network
• The significance of electrocardiography in dogs before surgery
• Neoplasms in an animal’s reproductive system
• The relevance of veterinarians in meeting retail needs
• Factors affecting milk quality in family farm settings
• As a technique for sustainability in agriculture, rotated grazing
• Prevalence of breast cancers in women and examination of their clinical and epidemiological features
• Cigarette carcinogens bring on principal tumours in dogs and cats
• Carcinogen-related cancer types manifested in dogs and cats exposed to smoke
• Gentamicin intramammary therapy in lactating cows with clinical and subclinical mastitis
• Aloe vera and arnica Montana as natural remedies for horse pythiosis
• Examine the veterinary nursing policies and practices of various nations and any potential working circumstances for nurses there
• An Investigation on how changing climate patterns affect the distribution of animal diseases and the practice of veterinary medicine.
• An Analysis of different approaches to prevent and control zoonotic diseases in animals and humans
• Exploring recent advancements in surgical techniques for veterinary procedures
• Examining the relationship between animal behaviour, welfare, and veterinary care and proposing strategies to improve the well-being of animals in clinical settings.
• Investigating the development of new drugs for veterinary use
• The concept of One Health and its application in managing complex health issues at the intersection of human and animal health
• Study newly emerging infectious diseases in animals and implications for veterinary practice and public health.
• A Comparative study on different diagnostic imaging techniques used in veterinary medicine
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The School of Veterinary Medicine’s biomedical research programs include basic, translational and clinical research of all animals. Areas of study include cancer, immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, regenerative medicine and several more.

• The primary focus of the research at Penn Vet is to understand diseases of animals to improve animal health, and to provide translational knowledge to advance human health.
• Penn Vet’s robust research program is funded from a variety of sources, including the National Institutes of Health; Penn Vet receives more NIH funding per faculty member than any other veterinary school.
• A major strength of Penn Vet is the association it has with the other major biomedical schools at Penn, which is best exemplified by Penn’s combined biomedical graduate program the ensures integration of our faculty and students across campus.
• Our scientists have seamless interactions with the whole biomedical Penn community, which ensures access to an unlimited number of cores and equipment, and most importantly are integrated into a robust intellectual environment that is a prerequisite for productive scientific advances.

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Neuroscience research at Penn Vet focuses on clinical and basic studies to improve our understanding of the central nervous system and its involvement in diseases ranging from neurodegenerative disorders to obesity.

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In the last 30 years, techniques have been developed to enable the modification of individual genes in animals and plants and thereby precisely alter inherited traits. These genetically altered animals and plants are called transgenic and are of enormous value in medicine and agriculture.

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National Research Council (US) Committee on the National Needs for Research in Veterinary Science . Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2005.

Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science.

• Hardcopy Version at National Academies Press

R esearch in veterinary science is critical to the protection of public health and the advancement of science that benefits both humans and animals as individuals and populations. Veterinary research includes studies on prevention, control, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases and on the basic biology and welfare of animals. It transcends species boundaries to include the study of spontaneous and experimental models of both human and animal disease and research at important human-animal interfaces, such as food safety, wildlife and ecosystem health, zoonotic diseases, and public policy.

The rich history of veterinary research, which includes studies on infectious disease and in other biomedical sciences, is replete with seminal contributions to the improvement of animal and human well-being. The many contributions of veterinary research were the results of society's recognition of its important role and society's subsequent support in the form of human, fiscal, and infrastructural resources. The current level of support for veterinary research, however, has not kept pace with the challenges posed by new and emerging threats and the nation's growing demands for knowledge in biomedicine and animal health. That society's needs are outgrowing our knowledge base is seen in examples of missed opportunities to safeguard and improve human and animal health and welfare ( Box S-1 ).

Examples of Opportunities for Veterinary Research to Safeguard and Improve Human and Animal Health. In June 1999, an unusual number of dead birds were reported in the borough of Queens, New York City. Some 6-8 weeks later, an unusual number of human cases (more...)

The capacity of veterinary research depends on the availability of human and financial resources, research facilities, and infrastructure. This report identifies some of the most critical research needs and outlines recommendations and strategies for meeting them. Failure to provide the necessary resources could have devastating effects on both human and animal welfare, impede biomedical advances, and harm the economy and society as a whole.

To prepare this report, the Committee on National Needs for Research in Veterinary Science analyzed national research needs in three fields of veterinary science—public health and food safety, animal health and welfare, and comparative medicine—and looked at a number of emerging issues that fit in two or more those fields. The research needs include scientific investigation in domestic, wild, companion, service, and laboratory animals. The committee's analysis was based on a comprehensive review of published literature; information obtained from stakeholders, including the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) and several veterinary specialty colleges; and comments provided by national experts at the committee-hosted Workshop on National Needs for Research in Veterinary Science. Current funding levels and sources also were analyzed. On the basis of workshop input and analyses of available data, the committee identified past and future research trends and gaps and the scientific expertise and infrastructure required to meet the most critical research needs. In accordance with its stated charge, the committee did not make specific budgetary or organizational recommendations. (See Appendixes A and B for complete statement of task and biographical information on committee members.)

• CHALLENGES FOR VETERINARY RESEARCH

Veterinary research offers numerous opportunities for improving animal and human health, and unforeseeable challenges can be met best with a competent and properly equipped veterinary research community. Specific findings and critical research needs are detailed in Chapter 2 and summarized below.

Public Health and Food Safety

Foodborne disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Animals—both domesticated and wild—are frequent reservoirs of foodborne pathogens that can cause human illness. Human public health is affected not only by foodborne pathogens but also by the security of our food animals. A new awareness of the need for research on food and agricultural biosecurity arose after September 11 and the “anthrax letter” attacks later in 2001 because biosecurity research is closely related to maintaining safe agriculture and the food supply. Veterinary research on public health and food safety can contribute to:

• Improving detection and surveillance of foodborne pathogens associated with livestock and poultry production.
• Developing interventions to reduce their dissemination.
• Understanding the development and mechanisms of antibiotic resistance among foodborne pathogens associated with animals in the food chain.
• Developing preharvest and postharvest surveillance systems, diagnostic and detection systems, vaccines, immunomodulating drugs, animal and product tracking systems, and ecologically sound means of disposal of animal carcasses.
• Improving our ability to detect and identify disease and pathogens in animal populations and our understanding of interactions between pathogens and hosts so that effective preventive measures and countermeasures can be developed.

A concerted research effort can reduce the recurrence of food pathogens associated with livestock and poultry and ensure the security of our food supply.

Animal Health and Welfare

The increasing demand for veterinary research in animal health and welfare has several underlying causes:

• The perspective of the role of animals in human society and in the ecosystem has changed.
• A secure supply of food animals—such as poultry, cows, and fish—depends on their health.
• Some food-animal diseases affect human health directly (for example, some strains of high-pathogenicity avian influenza virus).
• Companion and service animals have an important role in human welfare.
• Laboratory animals are integral to our understanding of basic biology and physiology and are crucial for biological and medical advances.
• Wildlife health is important for the maintenance of the ecosystem and for the economy.
• Some emerging infectious diseases are associated with zoonoses (animal diseases that can be transmitted to humans).

Veterinary research is poised to improve human and animal health further through advances in preventive medicine, enhanced treatment for animal diseases, and a better understanding of transmission of zoonotic and other emerging diseases between wild and domestic animals and humans.

Comparative Medicine

Comparative medicine is the field that compares medical and scientific discoveries and knowledge of more than one animal species, including humans. Research in comparative medicine is invaluable for the overall medical research enterprise and for the improvement of animal health. Animal models used in biomedical research provide a whole-animal perspective that cannot be achieved at the molecular, cellular, or organ-system level. With technological advances, many new fields are emerging in comparative medicine, for example:

• Comparative genetics, which aims to develop reliable molecular markers of specific genetic traits to identify carrier and affected animals.
• Genome and phenome research that identifies specific genotypes associated with phenotypes.
• Stem-cell research and cloning.
• Genetically engineered animal models.
• Biomaterial developed to treat human and animal diseases.

Continuous progress in biomedical research will depend on our ability to develop and refine animal models to advance biomedical research, to preserve valuable models, and to improve methods for developing genetically engineered animal species other than the mouse to advance understanding of select diseases.

• RESEARCH AGENDA AND STRATEGIES

The committee outlined a research agenda and recommended strategies for doing the research ( Chapter 3 ) on the basis of the critical research needs described above. The especially compelling scientific opportunities to improve the quality of life of and minimize biological threats to animals and humans include the following:

• –Substantially improve the integration of molecular biology, genomics, immunology, whole-animal physiology, pathophysiology, and other disciplines in clinical disease research.
• –Encourage scientists, through grant-funding mechanisms and other means, to work collaboratively across disciplines, institutions, and agencies.
• –Encourage research institutions to foster research environments that nurture and reward successful team-oriented investigators and research.
• –Expand veterinary student involvement in ecosystem health and increase their opportunities to work collaboratively to study and understand complex systems and the intricate relationships between humans (individuals, cultures, and societies), animals (domestic and wild), and the environment.
• –Emphasize classes of disease agents of the highest economic importance, including those most likely to cause massive epizootics or epidemics and new and emerging diseases and candidate bioterrorism agents.
• –Emphasize the study and eradication of laboratory animal diseases that adversely affect the quality of biomedical data.
• –Focus research on the molecular bases of virulence and on how pathogenic organisms replicate and survive in the environment, including studies of vector biology, wild-animal hosts and reservoirs, host defense factors, and host-pathogen interaction.
• –Develop and validate rapid, sensitive, reliable, and where possible quantitative systems for detecting and monitoring disease-causing organisms.
• –A population-level view of disease and research on the interaction between wildlife, domestic animals, and humans.
• –Tracking of pathogen prevalence in animals, including companion, food-producing, and laboratory animals.
• –Tracking of foodborne diseases.
• –Maximizing the sharing and efficiency of developing, preserving, and housing important rodent and other animal models.
• Quantify critical, scientifically based measures of animal health and welfare to optimize efficient, effective, sustainable, and socially responsible food-animal production and laboratory animal research.
• Expand research on the human-animal bond and the overall role of animals in society.

Although the different disciplines of veterinary research are grouped in three categories—public health and food safety, animal health and welfare, and comparative medicine—the disciplines are intertwined, and many of the committee's recommendations apply to two or all three fields. For example, research in comparative medicine contributes to animal health through development of preventive medicine and treatment. Study of wildlife diseases contributes not only to wildlife health and conservation but also to public health because many human diseases are zoonotic. In short, veterinary research has interfaces with human and animal health and is interdisciplinary; therefore, collaborative and interdisciplinary research is crucial in translating scientific advances from one traditional discipline to another. However, such research may be hampered by administrative barriers, cultural barriers, and lack of economic resources. Agencies that support veterinary research have their own missions. When proposed interdisciplinary research is relevant to the mission of several agencies but does not perfectly fit the mission of any one agency, it can be difficult to get funding to support it.

Recommendation 1: The veterinary research community should facilitate and encourage collaborative research across disciplines, institutions, and agencies by reducing administrative barriers and by nurturing and rewarding successful team-oriented investigators. The community should encourage the development of a long-term national interagency strategy for veterinary research. The strategy could include a specific focus at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on integrated veterinary research via the Roadmap initiative. NIH should consider having a veterinary liaison like the veterinary-medicine and public-health liaison at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help to ensure integration of veterinary and human medical research. Other federal agencies, state agencies, private foundations, and supporters of veterinary research should recognize and provide long-term support for collaborative, integrated veterinary research.

Addressing critical issues in veterinary science requires adequate human, infrastructure, and financial resources. The infrastructure and financial resources for the conduct of veterinary research in institutions that play a major role were examined and compared with the resources needed to do the research proposed to meet societal needs ( Box S-2 ).

Institutions and Organizations Considered in the Assessment of Resources for Veterinary Research in This Report. Schools and colleges of veterinary medicine Colleges of agriculture

The National Research Council report National Needs and Priorities for Veterinarians in Biomedical Research projected a deficit of 336 veterinary pathologists in the United States and Canada in 2007, and the American College of Veterinary Pathologists reported needs for 149 veterinary pathologists in 2004. Similar human resource needs have been reported by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), CDC, and the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine. The shortage of veterinary researchers is due partially to declining interests in research among veterinary students, which in turn could be attributed to the following:

• The long period required to attain a DVM, a PhD, and postdoctoral training.
• The substantial tuition debt accrued during DVM training.
• The sparse financial support for graduate students in veterinary science.
• The brief exposure of veterinary students to basic science and research throughout their academic curriculum and internships.

The extended training could be partially addressed by establishing more combined-degree programs, and financial incentives could be provided to veterinary students interested in research through grants, fellowships, and possibly a loan-forgiveness program. However, stimulating students' interest in veterinary research may require a substantial change in the culture of colleges of veterinary medicine (CVMs). Academic faculties are driven to incorporate clinical learning processes into the early years of veterinary education and may not adequately integrate basic science and research in veterinary curricula. The capacity of academic veterinary curricula to incorporate and demand teaching of evidence-based medicine, including the use of research data and statistical analyses, will have a great impact on animal health and the mindset of those who support it. A consequence of failure to train the next generation of veterinary researchers adequately is that opportunities for veterinary science to address public-health needs and to improve animal and human health will be missed. A strong workforce of veterinary researchers is needed to provide the data required for informed decisions in matters that govern day-to-day activity in animal health and welfare—decisions that underlie the economic stability necessary for adequate national animal health care. Veterinary research is essential to informed decision-making by policy-makers who aim to develop effective legislation and regulations based on sound science.

Recommendation 2: Additional veterinary researchers must be trained to alleviate the demands and to meet societal needs for veterinary research. A debt-repayment initiative similar to the NIH Clinical Research Loan Repayment Program could address concerns about the large debt burden faced by graduates of CVMs. If NIH's Center for Cancer Research training initiative in comparative pathology and biomedical sciences and USDA's Agricultural Research Service PhD training program for veterinarians prove to be successful in recruiting and retaining veterinary researchers, they could be expanded and used as models for other agencies and companies.

Recommendation 3: To meet the nation's needs for research expertise in veterinary science, changes in recruitment and programming for graduate and veterinary students will be required. Changes would involve enhancing research cultures in veterinary colleges and strengthening of summer research programs, combined DVM/PhD degree paths, and the integration of basic science into clinical curricula. The AVMA Council on Education, which is charged to review colleges of veterinary medicine for accreditation and publishes guidelines for the process, should strengthen the guidelines for assessment of research in regard to opportunities for research experiences for veterinary students. Research scientists in training should be made aware of national problems in animal health and welfare, be given the opportunity to incorporate cutting-edge science into experimental design, and develop programs of high quality that compete nationally with other disciplines of science.

Increasing the veterinary research workforce requires an enlarged training capacity of educational institutions. The last major federal program to support construction of facilities for CVMs ended nearly 40 years ago. AAVMC has documented that 1,641,000 ft 2 of new and 611,000 ft 2 of renovated facilities are needed to train additional veterinary and graduate students to meet the demands of public practice. Space for classrooms, teaching, and research laboratories at all biosafety levels and housing for research animals is needed. Existing funding sources, such as state and university funds and gifts from foundations and private donors, are unlikely to meet the needs of the nation.

Recommendation 4: AAVMC and its members should identify ways in which the CVMs' facility needs can be met financially and logistically. They should consider mounting an extensive outreach effort to educate policy-makers in federal and state governments about the necessity of additional facilities to train adequate veterinary researchers. The committee did not find useful documentation on facility needs of federal or state agencies to fulfill their roles in veterinary research effectively, with the noted exception of the USDA Report of the Strategic Planning Task Force on USDA Research Facilities: A 10-year Strategic Plan. Report and Recommendations . The report recommended renovation of outdated facilities and noted that biocontainment facilities were required for research on high-risk pathogens. Although replacement facilities at the National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa, were designed and the first phase was constructed in response to the report, not all the documented needs have been met. Expanded biocontainment facility space was one of the unmet recommended needs, which was also given high priority in Homeland Security Presidential Directive 9 (HSPD-9).

Recommendation 5: The recommendations of the 1999 Strategic Planning Task Force on USDA Research Facilities and the provisions of HSPD-9 should be implemented immediately. Biocontainment laboratories should receive special attention. Adequacies and shortfalls in facilities—both federal and nonfederal—needed to support veterinary research should be documented and quantified. Other research resources for veterinary research include libraries, databases, animal health monitoring and surveillance systems, electronic communication systems for sharing data and clinical information, specialized populations of animals, and collections of research materials, such as tissue samples. Effective communication among the various entities involved in veterinary research is needed to maximize the value of studies and to leverage the resources of the relatively small veterinary research community. In particular, databases with clinical records that can be exchanged among teaching hospitals, private practices, and diagnostic laboratories would provide data that could serve as valuable cost-efficient tools for retrospective and prospective research. Likewise, tissue samples and other specimens (for example, serum, DNA, and microorganisms) from both healthy and diseased animals offer exciting opportunities to study animal diseases and epidemiology if they are archived properly for research with client or owner confidentiality protected and made available to the research community. Of equal importance, surveillance systems that effectively and efficiently integrate animal health, food-product safety, and human health monitoring findings into user-friendly and easily accessed networks are needed.

Recommendation 6: The American Animal Hospital Association, AAVMC, and AVMA should address the need for more effective communication among the federal, university, and private sector entities involved in veterinary research. The need for databases, animal health monitoring and surveillance systems, specimen collections, and other sharable research tools to support veterinary research should receive special attention. Organization of a working task force or national workshop to devise an operating plan for developing and managing these clinical and research databases and collections and to identify methods for their support would be an important first step toward the formation of national databases and archives (such as specimen banks and clinical databases) for veterinary research.

In addition to databases and tissue samples, many disciplines in veterinary research have benefited substantially from access to well-characterized animal colonies with known diseases. Preserving the genomes of those unique model animals is critical to facilitate research in animal diseases. The genetic similarity between humans and other animals is a compelling argument that studies with such animals would reveal both normal and abnormal pathways and mechanisms. Those animal colonies are imperative for integrative physiology and pathophysiology studies.

Recommendation 7: NIH and USDA should address the importance of engineered and spontaneous model colonies of animals and ensure that these valuable resources are not lost. This can be accomplished for some species by cryopreservation and preservation of their germ plasm in tissue banks until it is needed for funded, targeted research or by transfer of their genetic mutations into smaller laboratory species. For other species, maintenance of the whole animal may be necessary.

A review of the organizations that are most likely to fund veterinary research reveals that some research disciplines do not have an identifiable source of financial support from government agencies. Those disciplines include ecological research on zoonotic emerging diseases, dynamics of select agent, biodefense pathogens in wildlife, companion-animal and equine research, wildlife and conservation research, and zoo animal and exotic-pet research. Those disciplines contribute to animal health and welfare and to important elements of human health research or have direct human social impact, but they do not have dependable, permanent financial resources that would ensure their continuing advancement in research.

Recommendation 8: The veterinary research community should actively engage NIH, USDA, the Department of the Interior, the National Science Foundation, and other federal agencies and urge them to recognize and address the need for financial support for the disciplines of veterinary research that lack identifiable sources of federal funding despite their contributions to public health, comparative medicine, and animal health and welfare.

In this age of reductionist research and the ascension of disciplinary endeavors, veterinary research stands apart because of its breadth and interdisciplinary orientation. The world today is full of unanticipated risks in the form of highly pathogenic avian influenza, foreign animal diseases, and transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, to name but a few examples. At the same time, unparalleled opportunities in biomedicine have been afforded by advances in molecular biology, genomics, and other disciplinary sciences. Veterinary research serves as the interface of basic science and animal and human health that is critical to the advancement of our understanding of and response to impending risks and to the exploitation of disciplinary advances in the pursuit of One Medicine. The urgent need to provide adequate resources for investigators, training programs, and facilities involved in veterinary research must be met to seize the opportunities to improve the well-being of humans and animals and to minimize risks to their health.

• Cite this Page National Research Council (US) Committee on the National Needs for Research in Veterinary Science . Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2005. Summary.
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In keeping with our  2018-2022 Strategic Plan , our transformative research programs have strengthened during the past year. Infection and immunology research has grown and continue to garner external grant funding. Efforts in bacterial pathogenesis and virology are stronger than ever, with many grants and papers accrued on these topics. Work in reproductive biology continues to be strong, with a new specialized center and major funding from the Gates Foundation and the NIH. Our fully accredited Cornell Veterinary Biobank supports translational research studies and continues to garner donor and industry support.  

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• Gwendolyn Beacham  Porter Prize for Research Excellence
• Irma Fernandez , Cornell Graduate School Bouchet Scholar
• Lisa Fortier, Ph.D. '98,  named editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Journal of Veterinary Research
• Karla García-Martínez/Cynthia Leifer, Ph.D. '00  2021 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Graduate Fellowships for Advanced Study
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• Dr. Carrie Adler  NIH-National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS): Mechanisms Driving Stem Cell Responses to Injury in Planarians (Fellowship) ($1.9M)
• Dr. Hector Aguilar-Carreño  NIH-National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID): Mechanisms of Nipah Virus Fusion and Entry ($2.3M)
• Avery August, Ph.D. '94 and Provost Michael Kotlikoff NIH: Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation ($16M)
• Dr. Paula Cohen NIH-National Institute of Child Health and Human Development: Spermatogenic Gene Regulation and Infertility ($8M)
• Dr. Diego Diel  USDA-NIFA: Early Detection of Transboundary and Emerging Bovine Pathogens Through Next-Generation Sequencing ($1M)
• Laura Goodman, Ph.D. '07  U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Assessment of Zoonotic Risk of Emerging Infections in Companion Animals ($983K)
• Dr. Clinton Neill  Maddie’s Fund: Determining the Effect of Payment Plans on Access and Demand for Veterinary Services ($102K)
• Dr. Praveen Sethupathy '03  Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc: Developing RNAi-Mediated Therapeutics for Fibrolamellar Carcinoma ($200K)
• Skylar Sylvester '14, D.V.M.'18/Cheryl Balkman, D.V.M. '98  American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation: A Pilot Study to Evaluate the Tolerability and Efficacy of Temozolomide in Combination with Doxorubicin for the Adjuvant Treatment of Canine Splenic Hemangiosarcoma (Fellowship) ($12K)
• Dr. Brian VanderVen  NIH-National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID): Characterization of the Nutrient Assimilation Pathways in M. Tuberculosis ($3M)
• Dr. Gerlinde Van de Walle  Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research: A Novel Platform Technology for Biologicals with Antimicrobial and Regenerative Properties Based on the Stem Cell Repertoire of Secreted Biomolecules ($642K)

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Artificial intelligence poised to transform veterinary care

It’s difficult to grasp the prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) given its rapid and seamless integration into our lives. From a smartwatch tracking our sleep patterns and fitness levels to self-driving cars, AI-powered technologies promise to radically reshape our world.

Decades ago, visionaries questioned whether computers would one day have a place in human health care, helping physicians make more accurate diagnoses. Fast forward to January 2022: Johns Hopkins University announced that the Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) had successfully performed laparoscopic surgery on the soft tissue of a pig multiple times, each time outperforming a human doing the same procedure.

To get a sense of how AI is transforming the animal health space, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine hosted the first Symposium on Artificial Intelligence in Veterinary Medicine (SAVY) April 19-21 at its Ithaca, New York, campus. Several AI-based projects were shared by speakers and during poster presentations along with discussions about the current challenges and future potential of this emerging technology.

Adopting AI in and outside the clinic

Artificial intelligence is a computer simulation of human intelligence processes, such as learning, reasoning, and self-correction, to solve a problem or perform a task. Instead of a brain, computers have algorithms, a series of step-by-step instructions for “thinking” about data inputs to achieve the desired goal. Machine learning is a subsection of AI where the algorithm isn’t given a set of instructions, but rather trained on data to make decisions or predictions on its own.

Like any technology, AI is intended to improve our lives, by solving complex problems, automating tasks, and improving efficiencies and decision-making.

Veterinary medicine was slow to embrace AI, but that is changing. On the first day of the symposium, Sebastian Gabor, cofounder and CEO of Digitail, a cloud-based practice management software (PIMS) that uses AI to increase productivity, presented findings from the first industry-wide survey on AI in veterinary medicine. Digitail worked with the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) to survey nearly 4,000 of its members about their attitudes on AI, if they use AI in their practices, and if so, how, Gabor explained.

Of the approximate 83% of respondents who reported familiarity with AI, nearly 30% of them said they already incorporate AI into their practices, either on a daily or weekly basis. The finding surprised Gabor. He explained that it indicates veterinarians scored high on the adoption curve, meaning they are quick to seize on new technology, including seasoned practitioners.

It turns out veterinarians of all generations, including those approaching retirement, are excited to learn about AI voice-to-text tools that quickly transcribe client conversations and incorporate the information into the patient’s medical record. “This technology allows veterinarians to stop doing something they don’t enjoy, like updating medical records by hand, and spend more time with patients, which probably explains why the adoption curve for veterinarians is higher than normal,” Gabor said.

The survey revealed that the reliability and accuracy of AI systems are the most prevalent concerns, with 70.3% of respondents highlighting them. Data security and privacy worries were listed by 53.9% of participants, followed by 42.9% citing lack of training and knowledge.

Outside the clinic, veterinary researchers are working with data scientists, statisticians, machine learning engineers, and technology experts to develop AI tools for use throughout veterinary medicine. Projects already underway include detecting early signs of lameness in sheep, forecasting the spread of Lyme disease, projecting the severity of an outbreak of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, and developing rapid diagnosis and staging of canine myxomatous mitral valve disease.

Pet owners are seeing a growing number of AI-powered gadgets meant to ease some of the challenges of owning an animal. For instance, two companies, Petnow and iSciLab, are developing nose print recognition technology for dogs that could eventually replace microchip identification. Smart collars track a pet’s vital signs and activity in real time, alerting the owner to possible changes in the animal’s health such as seizures.

Scaling up the power of AI

Geert De Meyer, PhD, heads the data analytics area for science at Mars Petcare, whose numerous animal health holdings include Banfield Pet Hospital and BluePearl. During his keynote address at the Symposium on Artificial Intelligence in Veterinary Medicine (SAVY), De Meyer explained that he and his team of over two dozen researchers have developed AI-powered tools used throughout Banfield and BluePearl hospitals.

For instance, RenalTech, is a proprietary technology using AI in the early detection of feline chronic kidney disease (CKD). As De Meyer explained, RenalTech was created with a dataset drawing on the medical records of hundreds of thousands of cats, analyzing blood and urine data of cats before and after a CKD diagnosis. The result is a tool that can help to predict whether a cat will develop CKD within two years.

AI’s predictive capabilities are making it possible to personalize patient treatment, improving the chances of a successful outcome. During the symposium, veterinary oncologist Dr. Joseph Impellizeri spoke on how machine learning algorithms and live cancer cell analysis are being used to predict the efficacy of anticancer drugs for lymphoma in individual dogs.

Lymphoma is among the most common types of cancer in dogs. The traditional treatment protocol for lymphoma—cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (CHOP)—uses a mix of chemotherapies. The traditional treatment method doesn’t account for the individuality of each patient, Dr. Impellizeri said, and patient response varies. ImpriMed, a California-based startup, offers personalized treatment protocol that uses AI to predict the efficacy of more than a dozen drugs commonly used to treat canine lymphoma.

“There is clearly a need for more personalized medicine and the ability to assess whether or not a lymphoma has a better chance to be responsive to a certain drug would be very helpful,” Dr. Impellizeri said.

AI on the farm

Veterinary researchers are also discovering ways of using AI to improve efficiencies on the farm.

Dr. Jasmeet Kaler, an associate professor at the University of Nottingham School of Veterinary Medicine and Science in the U.K., delivered a keynote address during the symposium about how precision livestock informatics can improve animal production, health, and welfare.

Take a dairy operation as an example. Dr. Kaler explained that monitoring devices fitted to each cow and throughout the production facility provide real-time biological and behavioral data, such as feed intake, thermal imaging, and posture. Algorithms are constantly analyzing these inputs, flagging subtle deviations from baseline health and potentially the early stages of illness that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Dr. Kaler is overseeing the development of another rapid-detection tool for the farm, one that uses AI to identify early signs of lameness in sheep. “Lameness is one of the biggest health and welfare challenges around the world and in the U.K.,” she said.

As a prey species, sheep hide signs of lameness if they feel threatened by human observers, making early detection extremely difficult. Dr. Kaler and her research team are working with industry partners to rectify this problem by developing AI tools capable of identifying the early onset of lameness, including detecting behavioral indicators when the sheep is standing, lying, and walking.

The challenges for veterinary researchers wanting to collect food animal data to develop AI tools are greater than those in companion animal medicine, according to Dr. Kaler. Livestock producers are especially reluctant to open their farms to outsiders who want to record animals and employees in a production environment. Nor are producers keen on disclosing details about their business.

Predicting disease outbreaks

Population medicine is another field of veterinary medicine where AI’s analytical capabilities show promise.

Dr. Beatriz Martínez López, director of the Center for Animal Disease Modelling and Surveillance at the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, uses algorithms, machine learning, and big data analytics to understand how foot-and-mouth disease, African swine fever, and other infectious diseases spread among animal populations.

“AI can significantly enhance prevention, early detection, and faster control of livestock diseases,” Dr. López said during her keynote presentation at the symposium.

She highlighted a report in Nature published in October 2023 describing a machine learning model designed by her laboratory to predict emerging infections in swine production systems throughout the production process on a daily basis. The model accounted for such variables as nearby farm density, piglet inventory, and wind speed and direction.

The model demonstrated a good ability to predict infections, Dr. López said, adding that veterinarians and producers can use these daily infection probabilities as a benchmark for preventive and control strategies on farms.

AVMA and technology

The AVMA has recently formed a Task Force on Emerging Technologies and Innovation to provide practical support and resources in this area of practice.

The task force has been charged with developing a strategy by which the AVMA can best support practitioners faced with the opportunities and challenges of emerging technologies. It will also suggest a charge for the task force and potential members for a future AVMA committee that will develop related policy and create resources to support veterinary practitioners in the effective and safe implementation of these technologies in veterinary practice.

The AVMA journals have created a virtual collection of scientific articles on the topic of artificial intelligence.

Learning more about technology in veterinary medicine

AVMA Convention 2024, happening June 21-25 in Austin, Texas, will have a number of continuing sessions dedicated to the topics of artificial intelligence, other technologies, and best practices for data collection and usage. They are as follows. All times are in Central Daylight Time.

• “The Impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) on the Veterinary Industry” by Dr. Christie Cornelius, a business consultant, at 10 a.m. on Friday, June 21
• “22 AI Tools to Grow Your Veterinary Practice” by Dr. Cornelius at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 21
• “There’s Room for Zoom in Your Practice: Embracing Telehealth” by Dr. Gail Golab, AVMA’s chief veterinary officer, and Steve Dale, longtime author and broadcaster, at 2 p.m. on Friday, June 21
• “The Transformation of Vet Med: An Introduction to AI and Its Role in Veterinary Medicine” by entrepreneur Shawn Wilkie, entrepreneur and technology enthusiast, at 8 a.m. on Saturday, June 22
• “Integrating ChatGPT into Veterinary Clinical Practice” by Wilkie at 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 22
• “Protecting Your Pet's Data: The Growing Menace of Ransomware and RATs” by William Lindus, director of operations at I.T. Guru, at 10 a.m. on Monday, June 25
• “Veterinary Cyber Security Is a Cat and Mouse Game. Which One Are You?” by Lindus at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, June 25

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Importance of Cancer Research

ciLiving (WCIA-TV; May 31) – During National Cancer Research Month, Dr. Tim Fan explains how research on the U. of I. campus is advancing knowledge related to detecting and fighting cancer, including through novel testing strategies such as liquid biopsies and through molecular and immunotherapy treatments.

https://www.wcia.com/news/local-news/watch-ccil-talks-new-developments-in-cancer-research

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