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‘Invisible,’ restricted horse racing therapy may leave a trail
Veterinary scientist in lab coat, gloves and goggles smiles while handling frozen biological samples

Mary Robinson, director of Penn Vet’s Equine Pharmacology Laboratory, led work with lab member Jinwen Chen, to find fingerprints of shockwave therapy, a treatment used to address injury and pain in both humans and horses. The practice is banned in racehorses 10 days prior to competition. (Image: Paulick Report)

‘Invisible,’ restricted horse racing therapy may leave a trail

Shockwave therapy is used in both horses and humans to speed healing, but it can also mask pain. For the first time, researchers led by Mary Robinson and Jinwen Chen have identified several biomarkers of the treatment, the use of which is restricted in horse racing.

Katherine Unger Baillie

These overlooked global diseases take a turn under the microscope
ebola virus through a microscope

In an experiment by the School of Veterinary Medicine’s Ronald Harty and Bruce Freedman, virus-like particles of Ebola (in green and yellow), which mimic the process by which the authentic Ebola virus spreads, exit a cell along filaments of actin (in red), a structural protein. Harty and Freedman are designing compounds to block this process, increasing the likelihood an infected individual could recover. (Image: Gordon Ruthel/School of Veterinary Medicine)

These overlooked global diseases take a turn under the microscope

Faculty at the School of Veterinary Medicine target neglected tropical diseases with advanced science, cross-disciplinary collaborations, and work in the lab and the field.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Three Penn faculty named 2019 AAAS Fellows
Carolyn Gibson, Sampath Kannan, Ellen Puré

Carolyn Gibson of the School of Dental Medicine, Sampath Kannan of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and Ellen Puré of the School of Veterinary Medicine.

Three Penn faculty named 2019 AAAS Fellows

Three from Penn have been named to the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s newest class of Fellows: Carolyn Gibson of the School of Dental Medicine, Sampath Kannan of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and Ellen Puré of the School of Veterinary Medicine.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Predicting treatment outcome for leishmaniasis
Scientists Phillip Scott and Daniel Beiting in a laboratory

Phillip Scott and Daniel Beiting have collaborated for years on leishmaniasis, employing cutting-edge "'omics" techniques to more deeply understand the disease and work to find therapeutic targets. (Image: John Donges/Penn Vet)

Predicting treatment outcome for leishmaniasis

In a study of patients treated in Brazil, a team led by School of Veterinary Medicine researchers identified genetic factors and features of the infection itself that predict whether patients will respond to treatment.

Katherine Unger Baillie

This Penn heart patient is a 9-year-old boxer dog named Sophie
sophie the boxer with a penn vet doctor

This Penn heart patient is a 9-year-old boxer dog named Sophie

Sophie underwent a cardiac ablation procedure in a Perelman School of Medicine translational research lab to treat her arrhythmia—the first time a dog with her diagnosis received such a treatment. Veterinary cardiologist Anna Gelzer says of the collaboration, “It’s the best of both worlds.”

Katherine Unger Baillie

Estrogen’s opposing effects on mammary tumors in dogs
two smiling veterinarians in an exam room, one holding a Chihuahua dog

Veterinary oncologist Karin Sorenmo and colleagues cast new light on the complex role of estrogen in canine mammary cancer. The research emerged from Penn Vet’s Shelter Canine Mammary Tumor Program, which assists in treating and then finding homes for dogs like Brownie, pictured with former oncology intern, Kiley Daube. 

Estrogen’s opposing effects on mammary tumors in dogs

Estrogen’s role in canine mammary cancer is more complex than previously understood. New findings may help explain why dogs spayed at a young age are more likely to develop more aggressive cancers.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior
Row of six adorable and different dog breeds

Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior

Border collies are highly trainable, greyhounds love to chase, and German shepherds make good guard dogs. While the environment plays a role, traits like these are highly heritable. A new study identifies 131 genetic variants associated with breed differences in behavior.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Identifying a gene for canine night blindness
four panels of cellular molecules highlighted by fluoroscopy. Right panels show fewer bright green dots but otherwise look similar to those on the left.

Research led by Penn Vet scientists has revealed the gene underlying a form of night blindess that affects dogs. Dogs with the mutation in the LRIT3 gene (right panels) have less of the resulting protein (labeled yellow-green) in the tips of the retina's ON-bipolar cells than unaffected dogs (left panels). (Image: Penn Vet)

Identifying a gene for canine night blindness

An international team of researchers led by the School of Veterinary Medicine’s Keiko Miyadera has identified the gene mutation responsible for a form of night blindness in dogs. Strategies to treat this condition could also inform treatment of other diseases that rely on targeting this cell type.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Is treatment forever? Success of gene therapy for inherited blindness depends on timing
Top-and-bottom show fluorescent, microscopic images of layers of the eye's retina in blue, green, and red.

Canine retinas after successful gene augmentation therapy with RPE65 (red-labeling of the RPE cell layer). When eyes are treated at a stage when photoreceptor numbers are close to normal, there is an arrest of retinal degeneration, and cone (labeled in green) and rod photoreceptors retain normal structure for at least four years following treatment (upper image). If degeneration is ongoing at the time of treatment, there is substantial and progressive loss of photoreceptors in spite of robust RPE65 expression (lower image). (Image: Aguirre Laboratory/Penn Vet)

Is treatment forever? Success of gene therapy for inherited blindness depends on timing

An FDA-approved gene therapy for Leber congenital amaurosis, an inherited vision disorder with a childhood onset and progressive nature, has improved patients’ sight. But new research underscores the importance of further investigation to halt the progression of the disorder.

Katherine Unger Baillie

The diet-microbiome connection in inflammatory bowel disease
a dog and a toddler lay on a carpeted floor looking into each other's eyes.

The diet-microbiome connection in inflammatory bowel disease

Dogs with a Crohn’s-like disease fed a special diet were found to have characteristic changes in their gut microbiomes, paralleling changes seen in children with Crohn’s.

Katherine Unger Baillie