UF-Led Center Continues Fight Against Diseases Spread by Mosquitoes, Ticks
Established in 2016, the Southeast Regional Center of Excellence in Vector-Borne Disease: The Gateway Program (SECVBD) will continue its work for another five years, thanks to renewed funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). “The center is a team effort to help communities prevent, prepare and respond to vector-borne disease threats through applied research and education efforts. We look forward to continuing to inform these public health actions,” said Rhoel Dinglasan, the center’s director and a professor in the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine affiliated with the UF Emerging Pathogens Institute.
Harnessing Genome Editing for COVID-19 Drug Discovery
A University of Florida research team is harnessing the power of genomic editing to illuminate druggable targets in human cells for the fight against COVID-19. By taking advantage of high-containment labs in UF’s Emerging Pathogens Institute—especially designed for studying highly contagious and virulent pathogens—the team is using CRISPR genome editing techniques to screen human cell […]
University of Florida Vets Use Placenta-Derived Treatment for Animals With Severe Bone Loss
A human placenta-derived compound developed by a University of Florida faculty member in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering is being used with promising results by veterinarians at UF’s College of Veterinary Medicine to treat animals with severe bone loss. Without the compound, the animals — which included a giraffe at the Jacksonville Zoo and […]
UF Veterinary Professor Honored by Two National Groups
Amara Estrada, D.V.M., a professor of cardiology in the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine‘s department of small animal clinical sciences and associate chair for instruction, was recently named to two national leadership roles. She was inducted into the National Academies of Practice in Veterinary Medicine as a newly elected Distinguished Fellow. This designation […]
‘Fine Tuning’ Certain Cells May Prevent Gut Inflammation, Researchers Find
Keeping the intestinal tract in balance requires a delicate dialogue between gut microbes and the body. When that gets disrupted, inflammation and intestinal damage can result. New findings by University of Florida Health researchers and their collaborators show how certain cells in the colon can be “fine-tuned” by chemically attaching a sugar molecule to a […]
UF Researchers Develop First-Ever Protocol for Treating Rare Infection in Dogs
While participating in a summer research project in Thailand in 2018, a University of Florida graduate student and his mentor discovered a rarely diagnosed and often fatal infection, known as melioidosis, in a dog, and helped veterinarians develop a protocol to successfully treat the animal. One year later, the 11-year-old Pomeranian mixed-breed dog continues to […]
UF Scientists: Gut Microbe Finding in Mice May Help Protect Pregnant Women From Malaria
A team led by University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine scientists reports that microbes living inside the intestines of pregnant mice more reliably predict susceptibility to, and severity of, malaria infection than do genetics — a finding they say may have implications for assessing pregnancy risk, and even outcomes, in vulnerable human populations. “We’ve […]
UF Health Researcher Named to the American Academy of Microbiology
A University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine administrator and professor whose research focuses on mucosal immunology and vaccines has been named a 2019 Fellow in the American Academy of Microbiology (AAM). David Pascual, Ph.D., the interim associate dean for research and graduate studies at the college, is also a professor of immunology. He was […]
Researchers: Thin, Silver Nanowires May Hold Key to Flexible and Safe Touchscreens
As manufacturers seek to transition from rigid touchscreen displays, which use brittle indium tin oxide, to flexible ones that can bend, roll or fold, they are turning to emerging technologies such as silver nanowires, but their safety has been a concern. To begin to assess potential risk, the scientists investigated nanowires of different lengths and […]