Skip to main content

PVM Faculty Honored for Research Success with Purdue Seed for Success Acorn Awards

Purdue Veterinary Medicine researchers who were present at the Seed for Success Acorn Awards ceremony (left-right): ADDL Director Kenitra Hendrix, ADDL Assistant Director Craig Bowen, Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Marsha Baker, Assistant Professor of Microbiology Shankar Thangamani, and Associate Professor of Veterinary Clinical Pathology Andrea Pires dos Santos.
Purdue Veterinary Medicine researchers who were present at the Seed for Success Acorn Awards ceremony (left-right): ADDL Director Kenitra Hendrix, ADDL Assistant Director Craig Bowen, Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Marsha Baker, Assistant Professor of Microbiology Shankar Thangamani, and Associate Professor of Veterinary Clinical Pathology Andrea Pires dos Santos.

When Purdue University’s Office of Research honored the accomplishments and innovative ideas of a host of researchers this week, several Purdue Veterinary Medicine scholars were among those recognized. At a ceremony Wednesday, November 14, in the Purdue Memorial Union North and South Ballrooms, the annual Seed for Success Acorn Awards were presented to Purdue Principal Investigators (PIs) and co-PIs who secured research awards of $1 million or more for a single proposal in fiscal year 2024.

University leaders conferred the prestigious awards on a total of 275 Purdue researchers at the ceremony, which was followed by a reception, where guests were able to meet and visit with the award recipients.  Congratulations to the Purdue Veterinary Medicine honorees, who are listed below in bold font with their qualifying grant and co-investigators (the names of Principal Investigators are underlined, and an asterisk indicates a first-time Acorn Award recipient):

Marsha Baker*, Willie Reed. Vet Up! The National HCOP Academy for Veterinary Medicine. Health Resources and Services Administration. $3,225,879.00.

G. Kenitra Hendrix*, Craig Bowen*. National Animal Health Laboratory Network Support Funding. Animal Plant Health Inspection Service. $1,000,000.00.

Timothy Ratliff, Philip Low, Jiang Yang. Therapeutic Targeting of Bone Hydroxyapatite in Multiple Myeloma. Paula and Rodger Riney Foundation. $2,112,173.00.

Shankar Thangamani*. Mechanisms of Candida auris Colonization in the Skin. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. $2,390,065.00.

Jason Cannon, Uma Aryal, Jean-Christophe Rochet. Mechanisms of PhIP-Induced Dopaminergic Neurotoxicity. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. $1,563,395.00.

Chi Hwan Lee, Bryan Boudouris, Pete Kollbaum, Shin Ae Park*. Smart Soft Contact Lenses for Continuous 24-Hour Monitoring of Intraocular Pressure in Glaucoma Care. The National Eye Institute. $2,177,089.00.

Andrea Kasinski, Nadia Lanman, Philip Low, Andrea Pires dos Santos. Ligand-Mediated, Vehicle-Free Delivery of Small RNAs. National Cancer Institute.$1,930,108.00.

Last year, Purdue received more than $647 million in research funding, a 6% increase over fiscal year 2023 and a 102% increase from fiscal year 2013. The university has an overall sponsored program portfolio of $3.1 billion and manages thousands of research projects annually focused on creating innovative solutions that help to provide a safe and secure nation and livelihood for all. Click here to view the full list of 2024 Seed for Success Acorn Award recipients.

Recent Stories

Annual Purdue Veterinary Conference draws veterinary professionals from across the country for learning and fun

The 2026 edition of the annual Purdue Veterinary Conference attracted attendees from around the U.S. for three days of educational sessions covering an array of topics.  With the overall theme of “One Health: Modern Veterinary Medicine,” the conference September 23-26 on the Purdue University campus drew more than 450 veterinarians and veterinary technicians, plus faculty, staff and students. Sessions taught by a total of 65 speakers, including many Purdue Veterinary Medicine clinicians and veterinary technicians/technologists, enabled conference-goers to earn up to 23 continuing education credit hours.

Significant Gift from Jordan Smelski Foundation will fuel Purdue Veterinary Medicine research on deadly brain eating amoeba

A researcher in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Comparative Pathobiology has received a generous gift of more than $100,000 from the Jordan Smelski Foundation for Amoeba Awareness and Mr. Steve Smelski to support research of the deadly amoeba Naegleria fowleri. Christopher Rice, PhD, assistant professor of parasitology and principal investigator of the Rice Research Group, leads a research team seeking to discover and repurpose drugs against primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare but typically fatal infection caused by Naegleria fowleri.

Purdue veterinary student receives Sir John D. Spurling Scholarship awarded by AKC Humane Fund

The AKC® Humane Fund, Inc.℠ has announced the 2026 recipients of the Sir John D. Spurling Scholarship, celebrating the human-canine bond, and one of the recipients is Purdue veterinary student Tiffany Chang of the Class of 2027. Chang is one of only five students chosen for the scholarships.

Purdue Veterinary Medicine Unites with Purdue United Way Campaign

With the goal of raising $700,000 by November 4 to support local nonprofit organizations that help individuals and families in Greater Lafayette, the Purdue United Way campaign took off September 23 with an official campaign launch on the front lawn of the Purdue Memorial Union. Purdue Veterinary Medicine, along with the university’s other colleges and units, will participate with the help of PVM faculty and staff ambassadors working to make it easy for people in the college to respond, whether by giving, or by indicating that they do not wish to give. As part of the PVM drive to support the campaign, Dean Bret Marsh and his wife, Polly, are contributing a match for campaign contributions from college faculty and staff. Additionally, a drawing will be held to select winners from those who contribute.

“Paws Up” – for Dr. Yasumasa Iimori – brought to you by the PVM Wellness Committee

This week we commend Yasumasa Iimori, DVM, PhD, who is a resident in Emergency and Critical Care in the Purdue University Veterinary Hospital.