Auburn University: Auburn AHAD represented at USDA-ARS open house

Three representatives of the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Animal Health and Agro-/Bio-Defense, or AHAD, program — Dr. Frank “Skip” Bartol, alumni professor and associate dean for research and graduate studies; Dr. Miria Criado, assistant professor in pathobiology; and Dr. Paul Walz, professor and head of the department of pathobiology — recently attended the dedication of the new, state-of-the-art BSL-2/BSL-3 laboratories for the study of avian viral diseases at the U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens, Georgia.

The event was held during the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, or USDA-ARS, Open House for invited guests.

According to Bartol, “these facilities will enable many of the goals of the Auburn AHAD program defined through a partnership with the USDA-ARS in support of National Program 103,” the mission of which is to deliver scientific information and tools to detect, control and eradicate animal diseases that impact agriculture and public health.

The AHAD program complements and extends the impact of ongoing work in this domain as a new element in the national network of U.S. government agencies and land-grant universities focusing primarily on diseases affecting economically important domestic animals, including those diseases that can be transmitted from animals to man, or zoonotic diseases, pose a significant threat to public health or impact national security and economic stability locally, nationally and globally.

According to Bartol — who spearheads the AHAD program with Walz — Auburn’s program extends and strengthens research of consequence to animal and, more generally, public health in the southeastern US and beyond. Their mission also complements efforts soon to be underway at the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kansas, a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

“As part of that nationwide effort, Auburn’s AHAD program expands the mission and capacity of the College of Veterinary Medicine’s existing animal health research to include research complementary to the goals of the NBAF, the USDA and the Department of Homeland Security,” Bartol said. “It works closely with partners in the allied federal space and leverages the capabilities of a National Animal Health Laboratory Network-supported program established at the Alabama State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, adjacent to the veterinary campus.”

The AHAD program focuses on the biodefense mission, consistent with four strategic areas of the National Biodefense Strategy as identified by the USDA-ARS. Those areas include: predicting the emergence of pathogens in livestock and associated wildlife; understanding the ecology of exotic, emerging and re-emerging pathogens; incident response research; and the development of veterinary medical countermeasures for early detection, prevention and treatment of foreign and emerging animal diseases.

The AHAD program at Auburn is also strengthened by proximity to and engagement with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta as well as its cooperative research with USDA-ARS scientists at the U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens. The program also contributes to this area of national need through service as a training center for the next generation of veterinary researchers and basic animal health scientists.

“Over the years, the Auburn College of Veterinary Medicine has developed important working relationships the USDA-ARS and other federal agencies operating in the agro-/bio-defense space,” Bartol said. “AHAD will work closely with its partners, as stated in the USDA-ARS National Program 103, “to protect and ensure the safety of the Nation’s agriculture and food supply through improved disease detection, prevention, and control.”