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i wanted a position where i could direct my own research program he said |
horsing around |
since joining the reproductive science laboratory at texas a&m in 2004 long has worked alongside students and collaborators on a number of research projects currently two of his projects are funded by the link equine research endowment |
in one project led by graduate student carlos pinzon his team is using genetic and cloning technology to prevent a disease called glycogen branching enzyme deficiency (gbed) in horses |
gbed is an inherited genetic disorder newborn foals with gbed perish because they cannot properly store sugar in their bodies |
to prevent gbed longs group removes the faulty gene that causes gbed from a carrier stallion and replaces it with the correct version the team then makes clones of these gene-corrected cells to ensure that stallions do not have gbed |
these stallions cannot transmit gbed to their foals because they do not have the genetic mutation anymore he explained |
for the second equine project longs graduate student cassandra skenandore is studying how well new anti-inflammatory treatments relieve arthritis similar to humans horses also suffer from diseases caused by excessive inflammation |
currently there are a lot of drugs on the market for treating human inflammatory disease but there are limited options for horses she said |
long noted that the goal of this project is to develop equine-specific therapeutics |
we would like to be able to develop biotherapeutic molecules that are specific to horses he said and so if the animal has arthritis or other inflammatory diseases these molecules could be used to improve their quality of life |
putting the ‘food in food animal |
long is also devoting his research prowess to solving serious problems within the cattle industry as well as to projects that have translational implications |
in one of those projects funded by the texas a&m agrilife research long in collaboration with fellow vtpp professor dr mark westhusin is using genetic technology to make cattle less susceptible to bovine respiratory diseases (brd) or shipping fever brd is estimated to cost the cattle industry billions of dollars each year |
to treat brd veterinarians often use antibiotics however most antibiotics have side effects |
when you use antibiotics you not only kill the bacteria that is producing the toxin but you also start affecting all of the animals microbiome particularly the good bacteria that is keeping these animals healthy long said |
to minimize the use of antibiotics longs group is making small genetic changes in the cattle genome so that these genetically engineered animals are less susceptible to the brd-causing bacteria |
while many of longs projects focus on improving health of large animals he is also working on a project that has a direct impact in human medicine he and his team have genetically engineered goats to produce proteins called antigens in their milk in particular these antigens can be used for developing vaccines against malaria |
long pointed out that purifying antigens from goat milk is a cost-effective method of producing malaria vaccines furthermore he explained that with global temperatures on the rise infectious diseases such as malaria have the potential to spread to countries that lie beyond the tropics like the united states |
its getting hotter in places where it wasnt before he said thats going to cause the pattern of disease outbreaks to change as well you just have to be prepared for that sort of thing |
through his diverse research projects long has established enduring collaborations with researchers within texas a&m university and at other institutions he says he values these relationships tremendously |
i have had the good fortune of working in the reproductive sciences group from the day i started at texas a&m university he said it has been incredibly rewarding to work with my colleagues drs (michael) golding westhusin and (duane) kraemer |
as a research mentor long enjoys working with his students in developing their research ideas his students look up to him as a source of inspiration and motivation |
one thing that dr long always says is ‘never let the sun go down without making some kind of progress the biggest lesson that he has tried to instill in me is to just do it skenandore said |
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note: this story originally appeared in the 2019 spring edition of cvm today |
for more information about the texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical sciences please visit our website at vetmedtamuedu or join us on facebook instagram and twitter |
contact information: jennifer gauntt interim director of communications media & public relations texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical science; jgauntt@cvmtamuedu; 979-862-4216 |
cvm professor tom welshs research focus on how brahman cattle respond to stress will impact both the health of the animal and the health of the industry |
story by ashli villarreal |
many american beef producers raise angus-dominated herds but as worldwide temperatures increase there will be an increased need for tropically adapted animals brahman cattle do well in hot humid climates but they are often criticized for their negative and aggressive reactions to humans |
crossbred cattle in the gulf coast states are part brahman but research about brahman genetics and molecular measurements is limited said dr tom welsh a professor who holds a dual appointment in the texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biosciences (cvm) department of veterinary integrative biosciences (vibs) and the college of agriculture & life sciences department of animal science |
if climate change occurs as predicted we will have a greater and greater dependence on tropically adapted livestock welsh said brahman cattle have important genes to contribute to adaptability to heat humidity and parasites brahman are important theyre different and theyre going to be even more important at least as contributors to cross-breeding |
most of the research from midwest schools use dairy or temperate beef breeds but these findings do not often translate to brahman cattle said welsh |
to fill this gap welsh and dr ronald randel use the purebred brahman herd at the texas a&m agrilife research & extension center at overton texas to focus on how stress during pregnancy affects the health and productivity of brahman offspring |
with funding from texas a&ms one health initiative grant welsh was part of a larger team that looked at how transportation during pregnancy affects cows offspring |
they found that the prenatally stressed calves were more excitable reactive and aggressive toward humans and prenatally stressed male calves also had higher blood levels of cortisol a hormone that is released in response to a stressful situation and is also often called the fight-or-flight hormone |
increased production of cortisol is associated with decreased immunity in people and cattle |
stress responsiveness is negative to productivity welsh explained and prenatal stress supposedly leads to altered behavior more active adrenal systems and more stress response what we need to determine is if the cattle are more or less capable of mounting an immune response if theyve been prenatally stressed |
welsh co-authored a paper that used the same calves from the one health initiative grant this project also found that cortisol and activity level were elevated in prenatally stressed calves while also indicating that cells in prenatally stressed calves were less able to signal for help when fighting off infections |
welsh randel penny riggs and david riley at texas a&m agrilife research recently received funding from the us department of agriculture to focus on the use of blood cells as a surrogate measurement for determining how specific tissues or organs respond to stress the implications of this research could mean that dna from blood cells could be used to help predict future resistance to respiratory disease according to welsh |
these samples could be taken from young animals so a producer would not have to wait and raise a calf until maturity to see how it will respond to stress choosing which calves will be the most productive is an economical decision that every producer must make |
recently welsh applied for funding to investigate the effects of prenatal stress on telomere length telomeres on the ends of the chromosomes protect dna when a cell divides telomere length decreases as aging increases and stress seems to accelerate telomere shortening welsh said |
along with health impacts welshs research also has economic impacts welsh aims to determine if telomere length can be used to predict the longevity of a productive animal in a herd a cow needs to produce four to six calves before she begins to bring a profit to the producer |
cattle producersspecifically those in west texasreceive cattle across the gulf coast and these cattle often have some portion of brahman to improve their adaptation to hot humid climates they are often transported multiple times before reaching their destination and cattle from different producers are often mixed together and may be exposed to other animals harboring viral or bacterial pathogens |
during transportation cattle may have inadequate access to or dislike their new food or water which may cause cattle to refuse to eat or drink resulting in dehydration the stress from multiple transportations coupled with stress from decreased food or water intake can decrease cattles ability to fight off infection welsh said |
determining how brahman-cross cattle respond to stress and being able to predict their respiratory response to stress would allow west texas cattle producers to receive healthier calves welsh explained receiving healthier calves would mean producers would be able to avoid giving cattle antimicrobials and antimicrobial resistance in beef cattle is a public health concern |
being able to have markers for stress responsiveness would allow producers to select cattle that tolerate stress better animals that respond better to stress are more productive so welshs research could lead to cattle that are healthier require fewer antibiotics and have a greater production yield |
welsh did not grow up around cattle but was exposed to agriculture through 4-h and ffa while in school he was exposed to the research process when he joined dr bryan johnsons lab at north carolina state during his undergraduate career |
the experience allowed him to see that science depends on curiosity not only does science require curiosity; it also should include collaboration welsh says |
collaboration expands the impact of the research expands the depth with which one can investigate a question he said |
the beef industry is a significant component of us agriculture supplying nutrient-dense food for domestic consumption and for export to international customers about 45 percent of the nations beef cows the primary source of the calves that enter the food chain via the texas and oklahoma feedlots live in oklahoma and texas |
to improve the health and feedlot performance of calves from the gulf coast and southeastern states welsh and randel developed an interstate collaborative research team with cvms dr sara lawhon; drs scott willard and rhonda vann of mississippi state university; and drs nicole burdick sanchez and jeff carroll of the usda agricultural research services in lubbock texas |
through the teams research projects undergraduate graduate and veterinary students from west texas a&m texas a&m texas tech and mississippi state have gained experience with interdisciplinary teams |
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note: this story originally appeared in the 2019 spring edition of cvm today |
for more information about the texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical sciences please visit our website at vetmedtamuedu or join us on facebook instagram and twitter |
contact information: jennifer gauntt interim director of communications media & public relations texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical science; jgauntt@cvmtamuedu; 979-862-4216 |
cvm ambassador rebecca gooder is building community relationships as she guides visitors around the college and interacts with customers at the local producers cooperative |
story by megan myers |
rebecca gooder maintains a busy schedule as a third-year veterinary student who works both as a texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical sciences (cvm) ambassador and a customer service representative at producers cooperative in bryan one of the largest local agricultural supply cooperatives in the nation |
producers cooperative is a member-owned association in the brazos valley with about 10 000 members |
although gooder is currently the only cvm student working in the supply division the cooperative has a history of hiring texas a&m students |
according to hope bay moriarty a division manager at the cooperatives bryan location a&m students make excellent employees they use their jobs as opportunities to learn more about the agricultural industry and to strengthen their customer service skills and work habits |
moriarty mentioned that gooder in particular demonstrates outstanding character and has built up a very positive reputation among customers and co-workers |
rebecca is a superstar here moriarty said she is always honest kind courteous and very knowledgeable we have many customers who will wait to have rebecca check them out or help them because of their past experiences with her |
since gooder began working at producers cooperative in 2014 she has assisted and advised customers on their agricultural needs she says she has enjoyed getting to work with customers and learn more about the agricultural products she sells |
being in a customer service-type job i have the opportunity to interact with a lot of different people she said having the ability to effectively communicate and build relationships has served me well at producers and it certainly will as a veterinarian as well |
gooder has also used her job as an opportunity to expand upon the information she is learning in her veterinary classes |
at school ive learned for example all about bovine respiratory disease at work i have the opportunity to familiarize myself with all of the various vaccines to prevent respiratory disease as well as the antibiotics that treat respiratory disease gooder said |
her job she said is a mutually beneficial relationship between herself and the customers |
as much as i enjoy sharing my knowledge with customers i am able to learn just as much from them through the experiences they share with me she said |
in addition to working at the cooperative gooder serves as a cvm ambassador leading tours of the college for prospective students and encouraging them to apply |
i took a tour of the veterinary school when i first moved to college station and i remember being so appreciative of all the insight i gained from the ambassador leading the tour gooder said i thought ‘gosh i want to be able to impact someone one day the way she impacted me |
raised in california gooder became interested in agriculture at a very early age |
i grew up with horses and always thought i would become an equine veterinarian gooder said but through my high school participation in ffa i fell in love with agriculture |
after high school gooder knew she wanted a career that could combine her interests in veterinary medicine and agriculture |
i started off my college career at cal poly san luis obispo as an agricultural communications major but after enrolling in a general dairy husbandry course i took a giant leap of faith and changed my major to dairy science with a concentration in pre-veterinary studies she said |
after graduating from the cvm gooder hopes to work for a dairy practice in the san joaquin valley of california doing dairy production medicine she has gained experience in dairy medicine through many externships and internships including at threemile canyon farms in boardman oregon and daisy farms in paris texas |
she said one of her internships at agrivision farm management in hartley texas was what inspired her to move to texas and pursue her veterinary degree |
one of her best memories at the cvm was the opportunity to be a part of the grand opening of veterinary & biomedical education complex (vbec) in november 2016 |
as an ambassador and proud texas a&m veterinary student it was really exciting to be there that day and experience such a monumental moment for our school she said |
with producers cooperative her cvm ambassador position and her veterinary classes gooder has certainly acquired a variety of learning opportunities that will set her up to one day be a great veterinarian |
i cant wait to see what amazing things rebecca accomplishes after veterinary school moriarty said she is the kind of person who makes a difference at whatever she is doing and wherever she is; she certainly has made a difference here at producers cooperative |
### |
note: this story originally appeared in the 2019 spring edition of cvm today |
for more information about the texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical sciences please visit our website at vetmedtamuedu or join us on facebook instagram and twitter |
contact information: jennifer gauntt interim director of communications media & public relations texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical science; jgauntt@cvmtamuedu; 979-862-4216 |
dr noah cohen and his fellow cvm researchers help discover new strategy to protect foals from deadly infection |
story by callie rainosek |
researchers at the texas a&m college of veterinary medicine & biomedical sciences (cvm) have helped successfully develop a strategy to protect foals from developing a common and severe form of pneumonia by vaccinating pregnant mares weeks before giving birth |
pneumonia which is potentially deadly in foals between 3 and 6 months of age is commonly caused by the bacterium rhodococcus equi |
r equi frequently infects the lungs of foals causing symptoms such as fever and coughing however by the time symptoms are present the infection is well-progressed and more difficult to treat with antibiotics |
because of this some veterinarians choose to treat foals without symptoms with antibiotics to reduce the risk of severe disease or even death this practice however raises the risk of r equi becoming antibiotic resistant |
thats why clinician-scientists such as dr noah cohen are developing strategies that include vaccines immune system stimulants and new types of antibacterial drugs to protect foals against r equi and other bacterial infections without the use of antibiotics |
advantageous antibodies |
within the cvms department of large animal clinical sciences cohen is a professor in large animal internal medicine and the associate department head for research and graduate studies in collaboration with researchers at harvard medical school cohen was recently co-senior author on a study published in the scientific journal plos pathogens the study described the first vaccine effective against r equi in foals |
the study led by cvm graduate assistant joana rocha and dr colette cywes-bentley assistant professor at the harvard medical school compared the susceptibility to pneumonia caused by r equi between foals born to vaccinated mares and foals born to unvaccinated mares |
study results indicated that the vaccine protected foals from r equi pneumonia and that this protection was mediated by antibodies transferred from mares to their foals via colostrum (the first form of milk produced by the mammary glands) |
vaccination of mares during late pregnancy is routinely practiced to protect foals cohen explained vaccination during pregnancy is necessary because unlike humans horses lack the ability to transfer antibodies to their fetuses via the placenta consequently foals rely on receiving antibodies through their mares colostrum during the first few days of life to provide them with immune protection |
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