Taken earlier this year (front row, left to right): Dr. Joshua Butcher, Dylan Lucich, Olivia Golden and Shannon John. Back row (left to right): Dr. Craig Miller, Titus Patton, Brayden Foley, Denton Huff, Brady Martin, Kristen Griffin, Katelyn Siegel, Lindsey King and Erin Willis. Missing from the photo but participating in the program were Ridwan Adesola and Madison Tryzbiak.

13 Veterinary Students Complete Summer Research Training Program

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Twelve first- and second-year veterinary students and one international veterinary student completed a 12-week summer research training program earlier this year at Oklahoma State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Designed to foster the development of the next generation of veterinary research scientists, each student completes a research project under the direction of a faculty mentor.

Congratulations to the following participants and their mentors on each of their respective projects:

Ridwan Adesola, mentored by Dr. Jennifer Rudd – “Antimicrobial resistance in Africa: Pets, wildlife and humans in danger”
Braden Foley, mentored by Dr. Timothy Snider and Dr. Rudd – “Unearthing the elusive Johne’s Disease: Widespread granulomatous disease and disseminated bacterial detection in Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis-infected goats"
Olivia Golden, mentored by Drs João Brandão and Dr. Nicola Di Girolamo – “20-Year trend in type of references used for small mammal drug dosages in an exotic formulary”
Kristen Griffin, mentored by Dr. Jerry Ritchey and Dr. Craig Miller – “p38 MAPK and NF-kB pro-inflammatory pathways are upregulated during SARS-CoV-2 infection”
Denton Huff, mentored by Dr. Joshua Butcher – “Myostatin deletion preserves glucose regulation and muscle function in Type 1 Diabetes”
Shannon John, mentored by Dr. Brandão – “Efficacy of lidocaine cream vs. EMLA (lidocaine-prilocaine) cream for pain-free- venipuncture in rabbits”
Lindsey King, mentored by Dr. Susan Little – "Prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi in Ixodes scapularis: Comparison between ticks collected from pets and the environment”
Dylan Lucich, mentored by Dr. Brandão – “Comparing temperatures at various rectal depths to alternative sites in New Zealand white rabbits”
Brady Martin, mentored by Dr. Little – “Changes in antigen, antibody, and microfilaria in dogs during Dirofilaria immitis infection and treatment”
Titus Patton, mentored by Dr. Rudragouda Channappanavar – “Evaluating the basis for severe inflammation caused by pathogenic coronaviruses”
Katelyn Siegel, mentored by Dr. Myron Hinsdale – “Barriers to female fertility in xyloyltransferase II (Xylt2) deficient mice”
Madison Tryzbiak, mentored by Dr. Erika Lutter – “Role of CT226 in Chlamydia trachomatis infection”
Erin Willis, mentored by Dr. Dianne McFarlane – “Novel biomarkers of canine gastrointestinal health”

In place since 1995, the program includes a weekly seminar series exposing students to critically important research topics such as research ethics, experimental design, analysis and presentation of data.

“The student projects, all centered around the essential role of veterinary medical research, demonstrate the range and diverse abilities our students bring to the effort,” said Dr. Jerry Malayer, senior associate dean for research and graduation education, professor and McCasland Chair. “Training is provided on career development such as how to prepare an effective curriculum vita to achieving a satisfying balance between professional work and personal life. At the National Veterinary Scholars Symposium students have the opportunity to present their work to a national audience from veterinary colleges around the country.”

The 2021 Summer Research Training Program was sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine.