Though the reason is unknown, castrated male swine experience nearly double the mortality rate of females, explains Sydney Puda, a student at Michigan State University College of Medicine. Puda is one of 15 students who have been named as part of the sixth cohort of the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) Veterinary Student Research Fellowship (FFAR Vet Fellows).
As part of her fellowship, Puda will be studying how to enhance survival rates in male pigs by examining how genes involved with the immune system work in pigs’ guts and understanding the specific biological mechanisms that influence the immune response in male and female pigs. She says her research seeks to understand how sex affects immune function, offering potential solutions to enhance gut immune health and survival rates in male pigs.
“Today’s national shortage of large animal veterinarians poses a serious threat to the agriculture industry, especially in the event of an animal health crisis that affects our food supply,” FFAR explained in a release.
To attract and support veterinary students in their professional development, FFAR, along with the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), created the FFAR Vet Fellows to provide 15 students from around the world the opportunity to pursue research furthering global food security, sustainable animal production and environmental sustainability.
“FFAR prioritizes Strengthening the Scientific Workforce to address the accelerating and unprecedented global challenges facing the U.S. food and agriculture system,” Nikki Dutta, FFAR scientific program officer, said in a release. “We are proud to continue our partnership with the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges to offer veterinary students the research experience needed to adequately prepare them to address climate change, emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance and other issues that threaten sustainable food production.”
Fellows conduct their research with a qualified mentor at an AAVMC member institution in the U.S. The year-long fellowship culminates with the Fellows presenting their research at the annual Veterinary Scholars Symposium, a national event attended by more than 700 veterinary students, as well as animal health researchers and leaders from top veterinary schools across the country.
The 2024 FFAR Vet Fellows are:
1. Muhammad Abu Bakar, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Pakistan (enrolled in the University of Missouri Veterinary Research Scholars Program)
2. Kehinde Adebayo, University of Ibadan, Nigeria (enrolled in the University of Missouri Veterinary Research Scholars Program)
3. Kimberly Aguirre, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine
4. Katherine Choo, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine
5. Alana Gates, Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine
6. Paige Johnson, Oklahoma State College of Veterinary Medicine
7. Emilia Jones, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech
8. Carlos Mejia Toro, Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine
9. Cathal O’Scanaill, University College Dublin School of Veterinary Medicine
10. Morgan Ostrander, Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine
11. Sydney Puda, Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine
12. Erin Scannell, University College Dublin School of Veterinary Medicine
13. Ivy Schmid, Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine
14. Kellyne Skillin, University of Wisconsin-Madison
15. Amber van Suylekim, Utrecht University & University of Calgary
