Beyond STAR
What happens once you finish your STAR project? Where did your classmates end up after they finished their studies?
From time to time, former students drop us a line, and let us know what they're up to.
Did you publish your research? Let us know. We'll feature your work here.
It's always exciting to see where a research project idea can take us!
Sarah Yeung
Sarah was a STAR student in Dr. Sina Marsilio's lab in 2021. The results of her STAR project on feline chronic enteropathy were recently published in Veterinary Pathology. The full article can be read here.
Kassidy Shelly
The results of Kassidy's 2020 STAR project titled "Fetlock Injury Prevention in Horses" under Dr. Sue Stover were recently published in the Journal of Biomechanics. The full article can be read in the November 2021 issue, or downloaded here.
Kristen Stucker
The results of Kristen's 2020 NIH-funded STAR project titled "Pharmacokinetics, Adverse Effects, and Effect on Thermal Nociception of Codeine Following Administration of Three Doses to Horses" were published in BMC Veterinary Research. The full article is available online, or can be downloaded here.
Alexandra Starr Grillos
The results of Alexandra's 2019 STAR project were recently published in the Equine Veterinary Journal. The article, titled "First reported case of fragile foal syndrome type 1 in the Thoroughbred caused by PLOD1 c.2032G>A" was recently accepted for publication and outlines the research on this genetic disorder, previously reported in Warmbloods.
Lynae Shubin
Lynae spent her summer at UC Dublin examining AMR in bacteria carried by seals that live on the Irish coastline. Her research was recently published online in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
Tracy Nguyen
Tracy was awarded 2nd Place in the Basic Science Category for her presentation on “OPA1 Mutation and Sex-Dependent Differences in Circumpapillary Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness in Rhesus Macaques (macaca mulatta)” during the 2020 College Research day series. Tracy is a second-year student at Western University of Health Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine. She participated in the 2020 STAR program under mentor Dr. Sara Thomasy.
Prathima Anjali Garudadri
Prathima was awarded second place for her presentation "Evaluating Health Effects of Microplastics in Marine Mammals: A Scoping Review" given on September 23rd, 2020 at the 29th Annual Meeting of the Northern California Regional Chapter of the Society of Environmental and Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC).
See these links for more details:
Evaluating Health Effects of Microplastics in Marine Mammals: A Scoping Review
Norcal SETAC Student Poster and Presentation Awards
Nina Yanagisawa
Nina completed a STAR project in Summer 2018 with Dr. Frank Verstraete. The work was recently published in the Journal of Comparative Pathology in an article titled, “Dental and Temporomandibular Joint Pathology of the Kit Fox (Vulpes macrotis)”. Co-authors are Dr. R. E. Wilson, Dr. Phil Kass, and Dr. Verstraete.
Emily Brown
A recent publication in Veterinary Ophthalmology, "Genetic analysis of optic nerve head coloboma in the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever identifies discordance with the NHEJ1 intronic deletion (collie eye anomaly mutation)," was started as a STAR project in the summer of 2012. The study was continued as a part of Emily Brown's dissertation work and was published in July 2017. This study highlights the lack of concordance of a routinely used genetic test with clinical disease in the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, and suggests that eye exams of puppies to screen for optic nerve head coloboma may be more beneficial to guide breeding decisions than relying only on CEA test results.
(http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/vop.12488/full)
Katrijn Whisenant
Katrijn was a 2016 STAR student and is a DVM candidate in the Class of 2019. She is interested in Equine Orthopedics and Surgery. Her STAR research, working in the labs of Dr. Peter Ernst and Dr. Monica Guma, focused on targeting glycolysis to reduce inflammation in mouse models of Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. A review with Dr. Guma was recently published in Arthritis Research & Therapy addressing the metabolic changes in fibroblast-like synoviocytes in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.
Connor Long
Connor Long is a DVM candidate from the class of 2020 and a 2017 STAR Fellow. His work with canine placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells was recently published in Cytometry Part A. Cell lines Connor isolated and characterized as part of this project are currently being tested in two veterinary clinical trials at UC Davis.
Connor first became interested in studying the therapeutic capabilities of placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells (PMSCs) while working as a staff researcher at the UC Davis School of Medicine under renowned fetal and neonatal surgeon Dr. Diana Farmer and bioengineer Dr. Aijun Wang. The Farmer/Wang lab had isolated a number of human PMSC lines for use as an in utero therapy for spina bifida. Connor realized that English Bulldogs are prone to developing spina bifida, and suggested the group isolate canine PMSCs to treat affected Bulldog puppies. Preliminary results of the treatment in spina bifida Bulldogs are promising, and if successful, this therapy will provide cutting edge medical care for veterinary patients while generating data that can be presented to the FDA in support of a clinical trial in humans.
Christopher Greiner
"When I was first considering my STAR project, I was interested in pursuing research that would be directly applicable to clinical medicine. However, it was only after I had met with Dr. Arzi to discuss a project that I realized I can do just that with his mentorship. Thanks to his help and guidance, I was able to succeed in completing my project as well as getting it accepted for publication in the American Journal of Veterinary Research. I would also have not been able to succeed without the experience and expertise of Dr. Sue Stover and her staff at the Veterinary Orthopedic Research Lab. I hope I can continue to make strides in improving veterinary clinical medicine with the lessons I learned from the STAR program."
The results of Chris' STAR project were recently published in AJVR. Link to the full article below.
Greiner CL, Verstraete FJM, Stover SM, Garcia TC, Leale D, Arzi B. Biomechanical evaluation of two plating configurations for fixation of a simple transverse caudal mandibular fracture model in cats. Am J Vet Res. 2017;78(6):702–11.
Victoria Yang
"I grew up in the city, but have always loved farm animals and wanted to have my own ranch one day. I would like to work with food animals and the agricultural community to help increase and improve animal and human health outcomes. Ultimately, I would like to build an educational farm that teaches people where their meats and dairy products come from. I also love going on hikes and adventures with my rescue dog from Taiwan as well as just sitting in bed and read a novel on a gloomy day."
Her 2015 STAR project with Dr. Munashe Chigerwe is being published in an upcoming issue of Research in Veterinary Science. To read the entire article (as an Epub ahead of print), please use the link below.
Ella Clark
Ella was a 2016 STAR student and is a DVM candidate in the Class of 2018. Her primary interest is zoo medicine and conservation, with a species focus on megavertebrates, bears, and big cats. When she learned that Dr. Verstraete was looking for somebody to pursue a project on black bears, it was the perfect opportunity. Their research on the dental pathology of the American black bear is recently published in the Journal of Comparative Pathology.
Hannah Savage
Hannah is a dual-degree DVM/PhD student, who just completed the 2016 STAR program.
"While rotating through the Pinkerton lab, I contributed to work showing that in utero and neonatal exposure to tobacco smoke increases susceptibility to bacterial infections after influenza infection (1). I then joined the Baumgarth lab for my PhD. While in the Baumgarth lab, I published a review that examines what is currently known about the cells that secrete natural IgM and the regulation of their IgM secretion (2). I also have submitted my first paper for publication, which identifies three populations of natural IgM secreting cells, one of which does not rely on the normal plasma cell differentiation pathway to control secretion and is able to adjust secretion in response to serum IgM levels (3).”
(1) Claude, J.A.; Grimm, A.; Savage, H.P.; Pinkerton, K.E. Perinatal Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) Enhances Susceptibility to Viral and Secondary Bacterial Infections. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2012, 9, 3954-3964.
(2) Savage, H. P. and N. Baumgarth. Characteristics of natural antibody-secreting cells. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2015, 1362, 132-42.
(3) Savage, H.P., V.M. Yenson, and N. Baumgarth. Different Requirements for Blimp-1-dependent and -independent Natural Antibody Production by B-1 cells and B-1-derived plasma cells. The Journal of Experimental Medicine 214(9).
Ashley Pooch
Ashley was a 2015 STAR student and is a DVM candidate from the class of 2018. Her research on Bulldog genetics with Dr. Neils Pedersen from CCAH was recently published in Canine Genetics and Epidemiology.
When asked how she came to study bulldog genetics, Ashley replied: "For my STAR project, I wanted to do research that pertained to small animal health, since that is my primary area of interest. I approached Dr. Pedersen because of his huge impact in this field, and asked him if he had any projects in mind that might work for a summer of STAR. He told me about his research into the genetic diversity of several dog breeds, and suggested that I apply these concepts to a breed that had not yet been the focus of such a project. We threw around several breeds, and when he suggested the English Bulldog, I knew we had found the right one. The breed is so beloved, and yet has so many health issues, many of which are related to their lack of genetic diversity. It is my hope that, with the publishing of our research, changes will be made in the breeding of these friendly, iconic dogs so that they can enjoy the healthy lives that they deserve."
Athena Gianopoulos
Athena was a 2014 STAR participant, under mentor Mary Christopher. She was trained by Dr. Christopher in blood smear cytology and 200-count leukocyte differentials,and travelled to Greece during her summer project to work in partnership with Dr. Mylonakis in reviewing the CME cases from The Companion Animal Clinic, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Through STAR I gained skills in cytology, statistics, research, scientific writing, as well as networked internationally.
This was my opportunity to get involved with, perform, and potentially publish clinically-relevant research in veterinary medicine with the support of a faculty mentor while exploring my interest in clinical pathology.
Her STAR project resulted in a publication in Veterinary Clinical Pathology.
Aimee Reed, DVM PhD CertAqV DACVM
After graduating UC Davis in 2011, I went to Oregon State University and completed a PhD in Microbiology through an NIH T32 grant focused on aquatic animal disease models. My thesis focused on genetic expression of latent herpes viruses in fish and I was also granted an interdepartmental grant to investigate a novel virus associated with neurofibromatosis in goldfish. I was involved in teaching veterinary, undergraduate and graduate students at OSU and Oregon Coast Community College in the Aquatic Animal Health Program and Oregon Sea Grant. I obtained my Certified Aquatic Veterinarian certificate through the World Aquatic Veterinary Medical Association (WAVMA) and have contributed to fish health and disease investigations in Southeast Asia, the Brazilian Amazon, and Singapore. After obtaining my PhD I started a consulting business, Reed Aquatic Veterinary Services, to provide veterinary care to fish in the Pacific Northwest. I also worked as a small animal clinician for Banfield Pet Hospital in Portland Oregon. I became board certified in 2014 with emphasis in Virology through the American Board of Veterinary Microbiology. I have accepted a new position with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife as the Senior Fish Health Pathologist and am excited to continue to use my skills as an aquatic veterinarian and a microbiologist and to continue research in aquatic animal diseases.
Publications:
Maegan Prescott, Aimee Reed, Ling Jin, Manoj Pastey. Rapid and Sensitive Detection of Cyprinid Herpesvirus 3 in Latently Infected Koi (Cyprinus carpio) by Recombinase Polymerase Amplification. Journal of Aquatic Animal Health 28: 173-180, August 2016.
Aimee Reed, Timothy Putman, Christopher Sullivan, and Ling Jin. Application of a nanoflare probe specific for latency association transcript in isolation of KHV latently infected cells. Virus Research (208) 129-135. October 2015.
Claire Ostertag-Hill; Fang Liang; Satoko Izume; Megan Lee; Aimee Reed; Ling Jin. Differentiation of BHV-1 isolates from vaccine virus by high-resolution melting analysis. Virus Research 198, 1-8, 2015.
Wendy Black, Michael T Walburger, Rocky Baker, Claire Ostertag-Hill, Aimee Reed, Margo Whipple, Ling Jin. Identification of pseudocowpox virus in Angus bull with failure to breed. Austin Virology and Retrovirology 1 (1) 1-5, August 2014.
Aimee Reed, Satoko Izume, Brian Dolan, Scott LaPatra, Michael Kent, and Ling Jin. Identification of B cells as the major site for cyprinid herpesvirus 3 (CyHV3) latency site. Journal of Virology 88 (16):9297-309, August 2014.
Jia-Rong Xu, Jennifer Bently, Linda Beck, Aimee Reed, Tim Miller-Morgan, Jerry R Heidel, Michael L Kent, Daniel Rockey, and Ling Jin. Analysis of Koi herpesvirus latency in wild common carp and ornamental koi in Oregon, USA. Journal of Virological Methods 187(2): February 2013.
Gregory Watson, Wayne Xu, Aimee Reed, Bobby Babra, Tim Putman, Elyse Wick, Steven Wechsler, George Rohrmann, Ling Jin. Sequence and comparative analysis of the genome of HSV-1 strain McKrae. Virology 433(2): November 2012.
Marion Tseng, Michelle Fleetwood, Aimee Reed, Verena Gill, Thomas Lipscomb, Jonna Mazet, and Tracey Goldstein. Mustelid Herpesvirus-2, a novel herpes infection in Northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni). Journal of Wildlife Diseases 48(1): January 2012.
Tobias Aalderink
During Dr. Aalderink's STAR project, skulls of 214 Eastern Pacific harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardii) were examined macroscopically for dental lesions and temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis. The results have been published in the Journal of Comparative Pathology.
M. T. Aalderink, H. P. Nguyen, P. H. Kass, B. Arzi and F. J. M. Verstraete. Dental and Temporomandibular Joint Pathology of the Northern Fur Seal (Callorhinus ursinus). Journal of Comparative Pathology (2015)
Skulls of 145 northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus) were examined macroscopically for dental lesions and temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis. Results have been published in the Journal of Comparative Pathology.
M. T. Aalderink, H. P. Nguyen, P. H. Kass, B. Arzi and F. J. M. Verstraete. Dental and Temporomandibular Joint Pathology of the Eastern Pacific Harbour Seal (Phoca vitulina richardii). Journal of Comparative Pathology (2015)
Maayan MCDonald
Maayan was a 2014 STAR student, under mentor Boaz Arzi.
Her STAR research project results were recently published in the Archives in Oral Biology. Characterization of the temporomandibular joint of the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) and Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus), Archives in Oral Biology, 2015 Apr;60(4):582-92. doi: 10.1016/j.archoralbio.2015.01.005. Epub 2015 Jan 9.
Armeti Aghashani
Armeti was a 2015 STAR student, under the mentorship of Dr. Frank Verstraete.
Her STAR project findings were recently accepted for publication in the Journal of Comparative Pathology. Dental Pathology of the California Bobcat (Lynx rufus californicus), Journal of Comparative Pathology, 2016: 1-12 (in press).