American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians

Event: 57th annual meeting, Oct. 16-22, 2014, Kansas City, Missouri, held jointly with the United States Animal Health Association (see article)
Awards: E.P. Pope Award: Dr. Timothy Baszler, Pullman, Washington, for noteworthy contributions to the AAVLD and the field of veterinary diagnostic laboratory medicine. Dr. Baszler received his DVM degree from the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1982 and his doctorate in veterinary pathobiology from the University of Illinois in 1990. He is a professor of microbiology and pathology in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology at the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine and serves as director of the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. Dr. Baszler’s research interests include infectious disease diagnosis and surveillance, development and validation of new test methods, and biomedical laboratory accreditation. He is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists and a past president of the AAVLD. Distinguished Service Award: Dr. Herbert J. Van Kruiningen, Coventry, Connecticut, for volunteering time, energy, and professionalism to substantially enrich and advance the AAVLD and the field of diagnostic veterinary medicine. Dr. Van Kruiningen received his DVM degree from Cornell University in 1960, his doctorate in pathology from Cornell in 1966, and his MD degree from Brown University in 1989. He is a professor in the Department of Pathobiology and Veterinary Science at the University of Connecticut-Storrs. From 2001-2009, Dr. Van Kruiningen served as head of that department and directed the Connecticut Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. His research focuses on gastrointestinal pathology, Crohn’s disease, and the pathology and pathogenesis of infectious diseases. Dr. Van Kruiningen is a diplomate of the ACVP. Pioneers in Virology Award: Dr. P. Suzanne Carman, Guelph, Ontario, for contributions to diagnostic virology. Dr. Carman received her DVM degree in 1976 and her doctorate in virology in 1984, both from the University of Guelph. A diagnostic virologist, she supervised the Animal Health Laboratory at the university until 2012. Earlier, Dr. Carman worked for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food Veterinary Laboratory Services Branch, where she supervised the Mammalian Diagnostic Virology Laboratory. During her career, she was involved in diagnostic test development, implementation, and interpretation for livestock industries in Ontario. Life Membership Award: Dr. Jerry Saliki, Athens, Georgia. Dr. Saliki received his veterinary degree from the University of Liege in Belgium in 1984 and his doctorate in virology from Cornell University in 1993. He is a professor of infectious diseases and director of the University of Georgia Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Athens. Earlier, Dr. Saliki was a diagnostic virologist at the Oklahoma Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. He has served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation for the past 11 years. Dr. Saliki’s research focuses on the development of improved diagnostic assays for a variety of diseases. J. Lindsay Oaks Best Student Molecular Biology Oral Presentation–Poster Award: Dr. Pragathi Shridhar, Kansas State University, for “Prevalence, isolation, and characterization of E coli O104 in cattle feces.” Richard Walker Best Student Bacteriology Oral Presentation–Poster Award: Dr. Jamie Rothenburger, University of Saskatchewan, for “Survey of respiratory pathology in wild urban rats.” AAVLD/ACVP Resident Pathology Travel Award: Dr. Lorelei Clarke, University of Georgia, for “Possible direct transmission of Histomonas meleagridis in peafowl.” Best Graduate Student Oral Presentation Award: Dr. Claire Miller, Washington State University, for “Use of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight spectrometry (MOLDI-TOP MS) for the speciation of pathogenic vibrio in fish.” Best Graduate Student Poster Award: Dr. Tuddow Thaiwong, Michigan State University, for “Wohlfahrtiimonas chitiniclastica–A first report of an emerging zoonotic pathogen in the U.S.” Best JVDI Full Manuscript: Dr. Murray Hazlett, University of Guelph, for “A prospective study of sheep and goat abortion using real-time polymerase chain reaction and cut point estimation shows Coxiella burnetii and Chlamydophila abortus infection concurrently with other major pathogens.” Best JVDI Brief Communication: Dr. Lesley Stringer, Belfast, United Kingdom, for “Bayesian estimation of the sensitivity and specificity of individual fecal culture and Paralisa to detect Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis infection in young farmed deer.” AAVLD Trainee Travel Award: Drs. Heather Herd, Tessa LeCuyer, Lorelei Clarke, Karan Agrawal, Federico Giannitti, Yuekun Lang, Claire Miller, Kelly Ray, Jamie Rothenburger, Kanako Sakaguchi, Dahai Shao, and Shankar Thangamani.
Officials: Catherine Barr, PhD, Amarillo, Texas, president; Dr. Francois Elvinger, Blacksburg, Virginia, president-elect; Dr. Tom Baldwin, Logan, Utah, vice president; Dr. John Adaska, Tulare, California, secretary-treasurer; Dr. Thomas McKenna, Sutton, Massachusetts, immediate past president; and Jim Kistler, Navarre, Florida, executive director