Iowa State DVMs receive more than $200K for research

Ames, Iowa

-- Researchers at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine working on developing flu vaccines for swine landed a state grant for nearly $150,000, and other Iowa State veterinary researchers will receive nearly $70,000.

Brad Bosworth, DVM; Ryan Vander Veen, a doctoral student in immunobiology; and Mark Mogler, a doctoral student in veterinary microbiology, are working with Hank Harris, DVM, on a vaccine technology that relies on molecular biology rather than traditional methods of growing, killing, and processing viruses. They'll receive $146,610 to fund their research.

This new method of vaccine development is faster than the old one and has already protected pigs from at least one flu variation: H3N2.

"Flu strains change a lot, and this technology can quickly respond to those changes," Bosworth says.

Another grant to Iowa State of $69,500 was awarded to Patrick Halbur, DVM, PhD; Dr. Rodger Main; Paul Plummer, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM; James West, DVM, director of food supply veterinary medicine; and research assistant Marianna Jahnke to develop a genetic test that uses biopsies from embryos and other tissue samples to check for inherited bovine diseases.