Infectious Diseases and Immunology

Building on Scholarly Excellence, Veterinary Medicine Postdoc Researcher Pursues Solutions to Global Crisis in Countering Antibiotic Resistance, Superbugs

October 18, 2024

Years of growing resistance to antibiotics have sparked an urgent global health crisis, giving rise to challenging biological threats and the emergence of more dangerous viral, fungal and bacterial strains, commonly called superbugs. Compounding the threat is the difficulty in a quick diagnosis, complicating how to effectively treat these illnesses. Purdue postdoctoral researcher Sharath Iyengar in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Basic Medical Sciences spends hours in the G221 laboratory at Lynn Hall, seeking answers to this health challenge.


Purdue University Recognizes World Parkinson’s Day by Highlighting Research Led by PVM Scholar

April 12, 2024

World Parkinson’s Day is an annual global healthcare event to recognize the cultural, economic, and social impact of Parkinson’s disease. In recognition of the day, Purdue University spotlighted research by Dr. Jessica Fortin, assistant professor of basic medical sciences, physiology and pharmacology in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Basic Medical Sciences.


Cracking the Code on a Universal Flu Vaccine

March 8, 2024

Promising initial research could lead to more effective seasonal flu shots and ward against future pandemics.


Second Antimicrobial Resistance Conference at Purdue Draws Expanded Audience

March 8, 2024

Attendance figures for Purdue University’s second Antimicrobial Resistance Conference demonstrated increasing interest in the event’s interdisciplinary approach to the topic that the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies as one of the top global public health and development threats. 


Purdue University to Host Second Conference on Antimicrobial Resistance

January 26, 2024

Combatting the threat of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) will be the focus of a two-day conference next month on Purdue University’s West Lafayette campus. Organized by faculty and staff in the College of Veterinary Medicine with additional support from the Colleges of Agriculture, Pharmacy, Engineering, and Science, the event February 27-28 will feature speakers from multiple disciplines.


Emerging Drug-Resistant Fungal Pathogen Research Targets Urgent Health Threat

December 15, 2023

A new $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will fund research led by a faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Comparative Pathobiology aimed at shedding light on a significant new health threat that involves an emerging multi-drug-resistant fungal pathogen. Dr. Shankar Thangamani, assistant professor of microbiology, is studying Candida auris, which he says predominately causes skin infections and has been classified as an urgent threat by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Antibiotic Threats Report (2019).


PVM Achieves Research Funding Record

December 15, 2023

The Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s research enterprise reached a record level of funding in the most recent fiscal year (2022/2023), exceeding $15 million, which represents an increase of more than 6.5% over the preceding year. About 60% of the college’s research funding comes in the form of grants from the prestigious National Institutes of Health (NIH).


Inaugural Purdue Antimicrobial Resistance Conference Draws International Attention to Serious Public Health Threat

June 19, 2023

In the face of a foreboding forecast of worsening multi-drug resistant infections (United Nations Foundation, 2021), the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine led a multi-disciplinary, campus-wide effort to address the vital topic of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) through a free conference held this spring. The inaugural event April 6-7 at the Stewart Center involved multiple Purdue colleges and attracted more than 100 attendees representing eleven states and seven countries.


New Genetic Testing Available Through ADDL Will Help Dog Breeders Eliminate Specific Diseases

June 19, 2023

Research findings by genetic scientists in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine have the power to eradicate specific genetic diseases within certain dog breeds. Testing for the genetic mutations will be offered by the Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory at Purdue. As the first such tests offered to the general public for three new canine genetic diseases, these screenings will enable breeders to identify which dogs are carriers for a disease and could possibly pass it on to offspring. By ensuring two carriers are not bred together, the disease can be halted before it spreads throughout the breed.


First-of-its-kind Vector-borne Disease Panel Screens for 22 Different Pathogens in a Single Test

December 6, 2022

A diagnostic panel developed by researchers in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine will enable its Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (ADDL) to screen for 22 different vector-borne pathogens in a single test.