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Date: July 18, 2005
Contacts: Bill Kearney, Director of Media Relations
Michelle Strikowsky, Media Relations Assistant
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail <news@nas.edu>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Reports Call for High-Level Coordination of Animal Health and More Research-Oriented Veterinarians

WASHINGTON -- The United States needs a new high-level mechanism to coordinate the currently fragmented framework for confronting new and emerging animal-borne diseases, such as mad cow disease, avian influenza, and West Nile virus, says a new report from the National Academies' National Research Council. Also, a second Research Council report released today says stronger efforts are needed to recruit more veterinarians and other scientists into veterinary research. Both reports note that a growing shortage in the number of veterinary pathologists, lab animal scientists, and other veterinary researchers -- especially those involved in public health -- is making it more difficult to meet mounting challenges in animal health.

The recently confirmed case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in June 2005 illustrated the potential economic impact of disease outbreaks, as some countries closed their markets to U.S. beef and beef products. Emerging diseases and the possibility of bioterrorism targeted at the food supply are among the evolving threats that challenge the U.S. animal health framework.

Currently, dozens of federal and state agencies, university laboratories, and private companies monitor and maintain animal health in this country. Many of the government agencies perform similar functions, while gaps in responsibility also exist, particularly in federal oversight of nonlivestock animal diseases. Animal Health at the Crossroads: Preventing, Detecting, and Diagnosing Animal Diseases says centralized coordination is needed to harmonize the work of public and private groups that safeguard animal health. The coordinating mechanism should facilitate the sharing of information among agencies and connect key databases, as well as improve communication with the public, especially during animal disease outbreaks.

The report also calls for stronger links in the network of public and private labs that test for and diagnose animal diseases. The establishment of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, which links labs performing tests for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is a good start, but the network lacks the capacity to deal with multiple outbreaks and currently is only prepared to detect a narrow list of diseases. Moreover, the animal health network needs better connections to the public health systems that detect and diagnose human disease, the committee said.

Agencies responsible for protecting against animal disease outbreaks, such as USDA and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, should support the development of new technologies for preventing and rapidly detecting diseases, the report says. These agencies should also take advantage of emerging information, sensory, and genomic technologies. Such innovations are needed to respond to the growing risk of disease spread caused by factors such as an increase in agricultural trade and large-scale production of food animals.

Given that the complex, rapidly growing global food system contributes to the spread of new diseases into the United States, the committee urged the U.S. to enter into new agreements with other countries and international organizations to create global systems for preventing and detecting animal diseases. New regulations are also needed to tighten controls over the sale and possession of exotic, nondomesticated, and wild animals.

To garner public support for strengthening the country's animal health framework, the government and private sector should raise awareness of the threat that animal diseases pose to human health and the $2 trillion U.S. food and fiber industry. Given that almost three-quarters of animal diseases can infect humans, collaboration between animal health and public health organizations is urgently needed. In addition, USDA, state animal health agencies, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), and colleges of veterinary medicine should develop and implement a national plan to train farm workers, zookeepers, and other front-line workers to recognize and rapidly report any signs of disease.

Unfortunately, the increasing challenges in animal health come at a time when the number of veterinarians pursuing careers in public health and veterinary research is declining. USDA, for example, predicts a shortfall of several hundred veterinarians on its staff by 2007, and a previous Research Council report projected a deficit of 336 veterinary pathologists in the United States and Canada by that time as well.

Boosting the number of veterinary researchers and improving their training and facilities is the focus of the second report, Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science. The report says current funding for veterinary research has not kept pace with the rising challenges posed by new and emerging animal diseases. Society's need to protect against these diseases is outgrowing our veterinary knowledge base, the report warns. For example, it took several weeks to correctly diagnose the first U.S. cases of West Nile virus in humans, which occurred in New York during 1999. The report blames veterinary students' waning interest in research on a variety of factors, such as how long it takes to obtain both a doctorate in veterinary medicine (D.V.M.) and a Ph.D., substantial tuition debt, sparse financial support for graduate students in veterinary sciences, and the limited amount of basic science research in veterinary school curricula.

A federal debt-repayment initiative and more combined D.V.M./Ph.D. programs would encourage more veterinary students interested in research to enter the field, said the committee that wrote the report. But changing the culture of colleges of veterinary medicine will be equally important, the report adds. To that end, the AVMA Council on Education, which accredits veterinary schools, should strengthen its assessment of research opportunities that are available to students. For example, summer research programs could be expanded, and academic programs that support high-quality, cutting-edge scientific research should be developed.

The committee also outlined a research agenda that emphasizes interdisciplinary study, which is particularly important in veterinary research because it affects both animal and human health. Veterinary scientists should be encouraged to collaborate across disciplines and be rewarded for successful teamwork.

There are hurdles to interdisciplinary research, however. If an interdisciplinary research proposal does not fit the mission of any single agency, for example, it can be difficult to get funding. To overcome this, veterinary scientists should encourage the development of a long-term national interagency strategy for funding veterinary research. To begin with, the National Institutes of Health should consider creating a veterinary liaison position, and pursue integrated veterinary and human health studies via the NIH Roadmap, the new initiative to identify studies important to the agency's overall research portfolio. Such efforts will encourage scientists in all fields related to veterinary science to seek collaborative opportunities. Dependable, permanent sources of funding also are needed for studies that are critical to protecting the country, such as research on wildlife pathogens that could be used by terrorists.

Noting that hundreds of thousands of square feet of new and renovated facilities are needed to train additional veterinary students to meet public health demands, the committee urged veterinary associations to mount a campaign to inform policy-makers about the need for new research space. There is a particularly urgent need for more biocontainment space for the study of dangerous pathogens. For example, although new facilities at the National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa, were designed and partially built in response to a USDA 10-year strategic plan, not all the needs documented in the plan have been met, according to the committee. The strategic plan's recommendations, as well as those of a Homeland Security presidential directive on the matter, should be implemented immediately.

Animal Health at the Crossroads was sponsored by the National Academies. Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science was sponsored by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, American Animal Hospital Association, Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, American Veterinary Medical Association, National Association of Federal Veterinarians, and the National Center for Research Resources. The National Research Council is the principal operating arm of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. It is a private, nonprofit institution that provides science and technology advice under a congressional charter. Committee rosters follow.

Copies of Animal Health at the Crossroads: Preventing, Detecting, and Diagnosing Animal Diseases and Critical Needs for Research in Veterinary Science will be available later this summer from the National Academies Press; tel. 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242 or on the Internet at http://www.nap.edu. Reporters may obtain pre-publication copies from the Office of News and Public Information (contacts listed above).

[This news release and both reports are available at http://national-academies.org]

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
Division on Earth and Life Studies
Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources

Committee on Assessing the Nation's Framework for Addressing Animal Diseases

Lonnie J. King, D.V.M.¹ (chair)
Dean
College of Veterinary Medicine
Michigan State University
East Lansing

Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D.¹(vice chair)
Vice President for Biological Programs
Nuclear Threat Initiative
Washington, D.C.

Sharon Anderson, Ph.D.
Director
Extension Service
North Dakota State University
Fargo

Corrie Brown, Ph.D., D.V.M.
Professor
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Georgia
Athens

Timothy J. Herrman, Ph.D.
Professor and Director
Office of the Texas State Chemist
Texas A&M University
College Station

Sharon K. Hietala, Ph.D.
Professor of Clinical Diagnostic Immunology
California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System, and
Department of Medicine and Epidemiology
School of Veterinary Medicine
University of California
Davis

Helen H. Jensen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics and Head
Food and Nutrition Policy Division
Center for Agricultural and Rural Development
Iowa State University
Ames

Carol A. Keiser
President
C-BAR Cattle Company Inc.
Champaign, Ill.

Scott R. Lillibridge, M.D.
Professor of Epidemiology, and
Director
Center for Biosecurity and Public Health Preparedness
University of Texas Health Science Center
Houston

Terry F. McElwain, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Executive Director
Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory
Washington State University
Pullman

N. Ole Nielsen, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus and Former Dean
Ontario Veterinary College
University of Guelph
Spruce Grove
Alberta, Canada

Robert A. Norton, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Poultry Science
Auburn University
Auburn, Ala.

Michael T. Osterholm, Ph.D., M.P.H.¹
Director
Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, and
Professor
School of Public Health
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis

Patricia Quinlisk, M.D., M.P.H.
Medical Director and State Epidemiologist
Iowa Department of Public Health
Des Moines

Linda J. Saif, Ph.D.²
Professor
Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center
Ohio State University
Columbus

Mark C. Thurmond, Ph.D., D.V.M.
Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology
School of Veterinary Medicine
University of California
Davis

Kevin D. Walker, Ph.D.
Division Director
Agricultural Health and Food Safety
Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture
Coronado, Costa Rica

RESEARCH COUNCIL STAFF

Robin Schoen, M.A.
Study Director

Peggy Tsai, M.A.
Research Associate

¹ Member, Institute of Medicine
² Member, National Academy of Sciences

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
Division on Earth and Life Studies
Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources

Committee on National Needs for Research in Veterinary Science

James E. Womack¹ (chair)
Director
Center for Animal Biotechnology and Genomics, and
Distinguished Professor
Department of Veterinary Pathobiology
Texas A&M University
College Station

Lynn C. Anderson
Executive Director
Consulting and Staffing Services
Charles River Laboratories Inc.
Wilmington, Mass.

Leonard S. Bull
Associate Director
Animal and Poultry Waste Management Center, and
Professor of Animal Science
North Carolina State University
Raleigh

Charles C. Capen ²
Distinguished University Professor
Department of Veterinary Biosciences
Ohio State University
Columbus

Norman F. Cheville
Dean and Clarence Hartley Covault Distinguished Professor
College of Veterinary Medicine
Iowa State University (retired)
Ames

Peter Daszak
Executive Director
Consortium for Conservation Medicine
New York City

W. Jean Dodds
Founder and President
Hemopet
Santa Monica, Calif.

David R. Franz
Director
National Agricultural Biosecurity Center
Kansas State University, and
Chief Biological Scientist
Midwest Research Institute
Frederick, Md.

Michael P. Doyle ²
Regents Professor of Food Microbiology, and
Director
Center for Food Safety
University of Georgia
Griffin

John A. Shadduck
President
Shadduck Consulting LLC
Fort Collins, Colo.

Darcy H. Shaw
Professor of Small Animal Internal Medicine, and
Chair
Department of Companion Animals
Atlantic Veterinary College
University of Prince Edward Island
Canada

David E. Swayne
Research Leader and Supervisory Veterinary Medical Officer
Agricultural Research Service
USDA Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory
Athens, Ga.

Ravi J. Tolwani
Associate Professor
Department of Comparative Medicine
Stanford University
Stanford, Calif.

RESEARCH COUNCIL STAFF

Evonne Tang
Study Director

¹ Member, National Academy of Sciences
² Member, Institute of Medicine