RIDE Seminar Series

June 12, 12–1 p.m., VSB 215 and on Zoom

Susan Arnold, DVM, "Breed-associated differentially-expressed genes in canine high-grade glioma: Will these findings have translational impact for human glioblastoma multiforme?"

Canine high grade glioma is an aggressive primary brain tumor that develops spontaneously in dogs. It shares many key features with human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the deadliest and most common glioma in people. A key feature of GBM malignancy is inter-patient tumor heterogeneity. Dog breeds have narrow genetic pools, which contributes to breed-associated heritability of various conditions. This presentation summarizes the key differences in expression patterns between glioma-bearing French bulldogs and other breeds, which may provide important information to optimize the canine model of GBM as a means to benefit both canine and human glioma patients.

Stuart Lichtenberg, PhD, "Search and destroy: Prion identification and remediation"

The unabated spread of chronic wasting disease results in substantial prion deposition in the broader environment, leading to substantial risk to susceptible animals, as well as raising the specter of cross-species transmission via indirect routes. New research from Dr. Lichtenberg is underway to glean structural information about prions from ultra-sensitive amplification assays. In addition, Dr. Lichtenberg's research group is investigating new methods for prion decontamination and carcass disposal.

May 8, 2024 (RECORDING COMING SOON)

Noelle Noyes, DVM, PhD, “How does pooling impact the observed microbiome diversity and composition of fecal samples collected from piglets?”

Microbiome studies typically use samples that are collected, processed and analyzed at the level of the individual host. Livestock microbiome studies, however, often ask research questions that are more relevant to groups of individuals. In such a scenario, it may be appropriate to pool individual samples to create a group-level observation of the microbiome. However, the impact of pooling on microbiome measurements such as diversity and composition has not been fully explored. This talk will discuss results of a recent project investigating the impact of different pooling methods on the observed microbiome of feces obtained from piglets.

Steven Friedenberg, DVM, PhD, "Insights and challenges from a decade of studying autoimmune diseases in dogs"

This talk will discuss how we use dogs as a model for studying genetic diseases, along with findings from his recent work in Addison's disease and autoimmune hemolytic anemia and plans for future work in the area.