The Chair of the US House Agriculture Committee, the Honorable G.T. Thompson, and Representative Randy Feenstra recently toured the new Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Hosted by Executive Director Pat Halbur, Director Rodger Main, and CVM Dean Dan Grooms of ISU. 

The House leaders were impressed and in a follow up story in the Des Moines Register expressed their support for the mission of the ISU VDL: “In the farm bill we passed out of the Agriculture Committee with bipartisan support last May, we acknowledged the importance of foreign animal disease prevention and response by fully funding the three-legged stool: the laboratory network, the National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program, and the National Animal Vaccine and Veterinary Countermeasures Bank. The three-legged stool of animal health supports on-farm biosecurity efforts, vaccine stockpiles, diagnostic test kits, emergency response, and farm education initiatives on foreign animal disease prevention and mitigation. Coordination among local, state and federal partners; farmers and ranchers; our university systems; and other pertinent stakeholders is vital to keeping animal diseases out of our country and responding to emergencies in an effective and efficient manner.” Full article here:  

Well done ISU VDL for broadcasting the essential mission of all animal health diagnostic labs.

February 19, 2025

Dr. Jianqiang Zhang, professor of veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, has been named the Lora and Russ Talbot Endowed Professor in Veterinary Medicine.

The endowed faculty position is one of three named professorships that the Talbots have established in the College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Rachel Allbaugh, professor of veterinary clinical sciences, and Dr. Heather Greenlee, professor of biomedical sciences, are the other two Talbot Endowed Professors.

A faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medicine since 2012, Zhang earned his PhD in molecular virology from the University of Kentucky. He also received a MD degree from the Beijing Medical University School of Public Health.

Zhang is internationally renowned for his role in building Iowa State’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory’s virology and molecular diagnostic services unit for food animal diseases into what many consider to be the best in the world. He has an exemplary record of presentation and publication of his work through scientific abstracts and proceedings papers and national and international meetings and in high-quality peer-reviewed journals.

Because of his productivity and reputation in diagnostic medicine and infectious disease research, Zhang has been invited to serve on the organizing committees of several major national and international scientific meetings.

His research interests include the development and validation of diagnostic assays for viruses of veterinary significance; genetic classification, pathogenicity, and cross protection of PRRSV; molecular epidemiology, pathogenicity, immune responses, and vaccine development of swine enteric coronaviruses; as well as the characterization of other viruses, such as porcine sapovirus, porcine rotaviruses, and avian metapneumovirus. Full article here...

Thank you, Committee Chairs

Committee Webpage Review Submission due March 1

Please use the provided link within this PDF Portfolio to access:

• Committee Chair reporting instructions and URL links to electronic forms
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• AAVLD Committee SOP

'2025 AAVLD COMMITTEE CHAIR PACKAGE''

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January 2025

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The Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation is the official journal of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians. The mission of the Journal is to educate by informing readers of progress in veterinary laboratory medicine and related fields of endeavor. The key objectives of the JVDI are to promote the science of veterinary laboratory medicine and the betterment of animal and public health. JVDI fully supports diversity, equity, and inclusion in our publishing activities.

Editor-in-chief, Dr. Grant Maxie / https://journals.sagepub.com/home/VDI

Racehorse welfare and safety is a vital component of the racing industry, with ever-increasing scrutiny and expectations from both the general public and the racing community. Since 2009, catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries sustained during Thoroughbred racing have decreased by over 40%, with continued room for improvement. The postmortem examination provides invaluable information not only in cases of catastrophic musculoskeletal injury but also in the event of exercise-associated sudden death or deaths due to medical causes.

We are inviting submissions to a JVDI special issue on racehorse diseases, injuries, welfare, and safety to be guest edited by Dr. Laura Kennedy, University of Kentucky; Dr. Francisco Uzal, University of California–Davis; Dr. Julie Engiles, University of Pennsylvania; and Dr. Sue Stover, University of California–Davis.

If you are interested, please submit an abstract of up to 250 words describing your proposed topic by March 31, 2025. Full research papers, case series, brief reports, and reviews of a focused topic will be considered, as will single-animal case reports if they are novel and include a review of the literature on the focused topic of the report. For abstracts on topics considered suitable for the special issue, authors will be notified by April 15, 2025, and full submissions will be expected by September 1, 2025. Submitted manuscripts will proceed through the usual JVDI peer-review and editorial process, with publication expected in the winter of 2025–2026. Page charges of $75/printed page will apply—there is no color page charge for online-only publications.

Please submit your abstract to guest editor Dr. Laura Kennedy, drlaurakennedy@uky.edu

In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity

~ Albert Einstein

The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it

~ Neil deGrasse Tyson

Science is the poetry of reality

~ Richard Dawkins

Functions of AAVLD Committees

Committees serve multiple functions that are essential to the AAVLD mission. This includes dissemination of the latest scientific information that will advance the many disciplines engaged with diagnostic medicine, including:

AAVLD Committee enrollment form

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• Annual Meeting Proceediings
• View all abrstracts and Posters
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• See student Testimonials

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Veterinary Jobs - American Association of Veterinary...

The American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians offers the top jobs available in Veterinary diagnostic labs. Search and apply to open positions or post jobs on the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians now.

Contact: rozuna@aavld.org

AAVLD membership is open to any individual interested in the disciplines and activities of veterinary diagnostic laboratories. Membership terms are by calendar year (January-December) and membership dues are payable by November 15th of the preceding year (to ensure inclusion in the annual membership directory, eligibility for committee involvement, and receipt of all six issues of the JVDI). Note: In order to receive a discounted rate for the Annual Meeting registration, you are required to be a current AAVLD Member.

See Winners of the 2024 Student Travel and

Student Competitive Awardees

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Go to AAVLD Foundation Auction More details ...

THANK YOU for your generous support of the AAVLD Scholarship Banquet and Auction. This year, we raised $15,350.00. These funds allow us to sponsor student/staff travel and other organizational awards. We expose many young lab scientists to exciting career opportunities at animal health diagnostic laboratories. Thank you, thank you, thank you.