Welcome New VTPB Personnel

JULY 2006

Dr. Donald Brightsmith started with Veterinary Pathobiology on July 17, 2006. He received his BS degree from Cornell University, MS from the University of Arizona and his PhD from Duke University. He is a Lecturer in avian conservation and health, has extensive experience in issues involving the conservation and health of exotic birds, especially parrots. Dr. Brightsmith has and will continue to build an active research program that will provide the Schubot Center with an opportunity to enhance its studies in psittacine diseases, to promote understanding of diseases in wild parrots, and to provide opportunities for the application of infectious and nutritional disease research to wild bird populations. Dr. Brightsmith will also promote the international aspects of our program.

AUGUST 2005

Dr. Elizabeth Jeter, Lecturer, joined Pathobiology in August 2005. Dr. Jeter has a B.S. (Biomedical Science), M.S. (Veterinary Physiology), and DVM degrees from Texas A&M University. Dr. Jeter will coordinate the VM2 Clinical Correlates course; participate in the veterinary student rotations to the Brazos Valley Animal Shelter as a component of the fourth year clinical microbiology/clinical parasitology; and participate in the Clinical Correlates VM1 course for the BV Animal Shelter experience.

Dr. Jeter has served as attending veterinarian in several local animal clinics and has extensive experience in shelter medicine through the Brazos Valley Veterinary Medical Association Veterinarian of the Day program.

JULY 2005

Dr. Wayne Corapi, Lecturer in Anatomic Pathology and Virology, joined Pathobiology in July 2005, coming from Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C., Canada. Dr. Corapi received his DVM from Colorado State University, served his residency in Veterinary Pathology at Cornell University, and received his PhD from Cornell University. Dr. Corapifs experience in teaching undergraduate courses in Histology, Physiology, Immunology and Virology, as well as serving as Veterinary Anatomic Pathologist in the Central Laboratory at Western University provides a good background for Dr. Corapi to assist in teaching Veterinary Microbiology at Texas A&M University. His research focus is in diagnostic pathology, infectious diseases of domestic animals particularly viral diseases, immune response to viral infections, dermatopathology, problem-based learning in veterinary medical education, animal welfare. He is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Microbiology.

Dr. Waithaka Mwangi, Assistant Professor in Immunology, joined Pathobiology in July 2005. Dr. Mwangi received a B.S. in Biochemistry and Parasitology from the University of Nairobi, Kenya and Ph.D. in Immunology from Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Since 2002, he has done postdoctoral training at Washington State with Dr. Guy Palmer.

Dr. Mwangi will greatly improve our basic understanding of vaccine immunology, focusing on the early events in antigen processing and presentation. These key events, which occur immediately following vaccination and are required to prime the immune response, must be better understood to make more effective vaccines. His research has demonstrated the effect of increased dendritic cell recruitment in enhancing DNA vaccine induced CD4+lymphocytes. Dr. Mwangi will also contribute to our teaching of immunology, especially at the veterinary and graduate level. His program will substantially support our Signature Programs in Biodefense/Emerging Infectious Diseases. He will be a welcome faculty member in the Faculty of Genetics Interdisciplinary Program, and a contributing faculty to the USDA Infectious Disease Training grant.

MARCH 2005

Dr. Fred Clubb, Jr., Professor in pathology, joined Pathobiology in March 2005. Dr. Clubb received a D.V.M. from Auburn University, M.A. in Education/Counseling from Ball State University (Overseas Program), and M.S. and Ph.D. in Experimental Pathology from the University of Alabama-Birmingham Medical School . His Ph.D. and postdoctoral work was with Dr. Sanford Bishop of UAB, who is world renown in cardiovascular comparative pathology. Dr. Clubb's expertise in cardiovascular and renal pathology includes low voltage electron microscopic human and animal diagnostic pathology. His expertise is in demand because of the need to evaluate not only the surgical pathology of human transplant and assist device patients, but also for GLP (Good Laboratory Practices) protocols that must be followed for submitting new stents and other cardiovascular devises for FDA approval before use in humans. Dr. Clubb has evaluated surgical electron microscopic cardio and renal biopsies for the Texas Heart Institute for the past 15 years, as well as collaborated with many biomedical surgical device companies around the world. Dr. Clubbfs expertise is an important link in our new Texas A&M University Signature Programs in Biomedical Engineering as well as the new DeBakey Cardiovascular Center so that the engineers and veterinary surgeons can apply for grants and contracts that require a GLP laboratory.

Dr. Clubb will teach cardiac and renal pathology to the veterinary students and residents in veterinary pathology and laboratory animal medicine. Dr. Clubb will continue his research program with collaborations with Dr. George Lees on renal pathology, Drs. Terry Fossom and Matt Miller of the DeBakey Cardiovascular Center, and biomedical engineers on cardiovascular GLP pathology.

Dr. Tracy Cyr, Assistant Professor in parasitology teaching, joined Pathobiology in March 2005. Dr. Cyr received a B.S. in Entomology from the University of California at Riverside, MS Degree in Entomology from Washington State University, and a Ph.D. degree in Entomology from the University of Missouri. As a Postdoctoral Research Parasitologist in the Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Animal and Natural Resources Institute, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, she taught biology courses, including General Biology, Zoology, General Entomology and Human Anatomy and Physiology to undergraduate students with a wide variety of interests and backgrounds. Dr. Cyr's teaching responsibilities will include didactic lectures and teaching laboratory supervision in a team-taught professional veterinary parasitology course with second and fourth year professional students (fourth year rotation discussion groups) as well as the Pathobiology undergraduate parasitology course. Dr. Cyr's research focuses on the putative role of cattle in transmission of Lyme disease and using RNAi techniques to gene silence in the cattle fever tick, Boophilus microplus.

Dr. Don Hong, Assistant Professor in genetics, joined Pathobiology in March 2005. Dr. Hong received a B.S. in Agricultural Chemistry from Korea University in Seoul, Korea, followed by a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Oregon State University. Dr. Hong then went to the University of Toronto for a post doc in Biochemistry research. His research experience continued at Harvard Medical School as a Research Fellow and then Instructor in the Department of Ophthalmology, developing special expertise in molecular gene therapy techniques involving the retina of the eye. While at Harvard, Dr. Hong's research has been funded by private foundations and most currently NIH. His work bridges agricultural and human molecular gene therapy research. He will also be a strong participant in the Genetics Program, Genetics Program Project grant, and Drs. Lees and Murphyfs NIH grant involving gene therapy of canine Alport Syndrome in the kidney.

Dr. Hong will greatly improve our basic understanding of gene therapy in the retina and in the kidney, focusing on the early events in gene targeting. These key events, which occur immediately following viral or injection therapy, are key to understanding incorporation events at the molecular level for successful gene therapy. His NIH funded program will substantially support our Signature Program in Genomics/Genetics, and our Interdisciplinary Faculty of Genetics.

JANUARY 2005

Dr. Malcolm Lancaster, Associate Professor in pathology service, joined Pathobiology in January 2005. Dr. Lancaster received a BVSc (D.V.M.) from the University of Melbourne and Ph.D. in Veterinary Pathology from the University of Queensland. Dr. Lancaster held the position of Senior Veterinary Pathologist with the Department of Primary Industries, Attwood in Victoria, Australia. His inquisitive and scholarly nature motivated Dr. Lancaster to return to academia to pass his ACVP examination, and his international and government experience is of great interest to our pathology residents. Dr. Lancaster's expertise includes anatomic pathology of wildlife, especially fish, and his Ph.D. focused on toxicologic liver pathology in laboratory animals. Dr. Lancaster's broad experience will add greatly to our pathology service, pathology teaching, and applied research. His program will substantially support our College of Veterinary Medicine Program in Pathobiology of Disease and the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital.