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A decade of advancing working dogs for the greater good
new litter of penn working dogs

(Homepage image) Puppies at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, like these black Labs of the “U litter,” begin their formal training at the tender age of 8 weeks, an unusual feature of the program. Playtime is an important part of that preparation, building confidence and improving physical and social skills.

A decade of advancing working dogs for the greater good

Inspired by her experience caring for working dogs following 9/11 at Ground Zero, Penn Vet Working Dog Center Director Cynthia Otto’s initial vision has grown into a thriving organization with a mission to use science to improve the breeding, training, care, and effectiveness of working dogs.

Katherine Unger Baillie

T cells that ‘nibble’ tumors unwittingly help cancer evade the immune response
Fluorescent microscopic image of three T cells surrounding a cancer cell

Tcells surround a cancer cell to finish it off, but such interactions do not always end with the T cells victorious. Researchers from Penn detail how cancer cells can prompt T cells to ingest bits of cancer cell membrane, a process known as trogocytosis. The cancer may evade immune detection as a result. (Image: Alex Ritter, Jennifer Lippincott Schwartz and Gillian Griffiths, National Institutes of Health)

T cells that ‘nibble’ tumors unwittingly help cancer evade the immune response

Blocking this process, known as trogocytosis, improved the ability of a CAR T cell therapy to treat cancer in mice, according to research led by School of Veterinary Medicine scientists.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Cooler temps and northern climes associated with increased diabetes diagnoses in dogs
A reclining dalmatian dog is examined by a provider with a stethoscope

A team from Penn Vet has identified an association between colder weather and climates and diabetes diagnoses in dogs. A parallel link is seen in diagnoses of Type 1 diabetes in people. 

Cooler temps and northern climes associated with increased diabetes diagnoses in dogs

Mirroring a finding in humans, diabetes diagnoses in dogs were more common in colder areas of the U.S. and during winter, according to a new study led by School of Veterinary Medicine researchers.

Katherine Unger Baillie

The Gambia Goat Dairy builds sustainability through community
A woman takes the heartbeat of a goat while two men secure the goat.

Abby Seeley (center) of Penn Vet does a health check up on a goat with the assistance of Sulay Camara (left) and Sainey Badjie (right). (Image: Courtesy of Brianna Parsons)

The Gambia Goat Dairy builds sustainability through community

Since its founding by Penn Vet students in 2016, the Gambia Goat Dairy has worked in partnership with Gambians to serve its community. The research and teaching farm also gives current students the opportunity to use their veterinary skills for social good.

Luis Melecio-Zambrano

Progress toward a stem cell–based therapy for blindness
Fluorescent microscopy against a black background shows a layer of green flecks over a mix of blue and red labeled cells

Progress toward a stem cell–based therapy for blindness

A multi-institutional effort led by researchers at the School of Veterinary Medicine is taking steps to develop an effective technique to regenerate photoreceptors cells and restore sight in people with vision disorders.

Katherine Unger Baillie

A newly identified stem cell regulator enables lifelong sperm production
Illustration of different cell types that eventually give rise to sperm shows that blocking an early stage of cell development can prevent the formation of sperm

When the enzyme DOT1L is not functional, spermatogonial stem cells become exhausted, leading to a failure of sperm cell development. This crucial role for DOT1L places it in rarefied company as one of just a handful of known stem cell self-renewal factors, a Penn Vet team found. (Image: Courtesy of Jeremy Wang)

A newly identified stem cell regulator enables lifelong sperm production

Research led by Jeremy Wang of the School of Veterinary Medicine has discovered that the enzyme DOT1L, a stem cell renewal factor, is essential for mice to produce sperm throughout their adult lives.

Katherine Unger Baillie