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Professor
Section Head, Molecular Research and Development
Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Research and Service
Dr. Bai’s research interests are to develop molecular diagnostic assays for identification, quantification and characterization of animal, zoonotic and foodborne pathogens using PCR, sequencing and other technologies. His research areas extend to genotyping, vaccine differentiations and potential vaccine candidate identifications; prevalence and molecular epidemiology of major animal pathogens. Please refer to Dr. Jianfa Bai’s website for more information.
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Assistant Professor, Infectious Diseases
Research Interest
Dr. Dhakal has over a decade of experience working with different pathogens of human and animal health importance. He has experience working with human, avian, and swine influenza viruses, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), and bacterial pathogens like Salmonella and Escherichia coli. Dr. Dhakal has collaborated with researchers from South Asian countries and published articles on pathogen surveillance, assessment of knowledge and awareness, vaccine development status, sustainable livestock production, and public health issues.
Dr. Dhakal’s research interests include infectious diseases, vaccine development, and understanding the effects of host-associated factors, including biological sex, age, and obesity, on viral pathogenesis and vaccine responses. Dr. Dhakal’s lab at KSU will continue working on food animal and human viral pathogens, like influenza and SARS-CoV-2, to understand their pathogenesis mechanisms. The goal is to develop optimized, safe, and efficacious vaccines and therapeutics against various animal and human viral pathogens.
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Research Assistant Professor
Research Interest
My research focuses on emerging, transboundary and zoonotic viral diseases including African swine fever, Rift Valley fever and SARS-CoV-2, with the goals of gaining better understanding of virus-host interactions and the development of effective control strategies for these important pathogens. My research involves studies on ASFV transcriptomics, RVFV reassortment, SARS-CoV-2 animal susceptibility and transmission studies as well as evaluating vaccines and antiviral treatments for these pathogens.
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Research Assistant Professor
Research Interest
My experience in vaccine development over the 10 years focuses on parasites and viruses. The current research focus in our laboratory is to develop effective vaccines that may confer protection against African Swine Fever Virus, Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus, and SARS-CoV-2. We are interested in identifying key molecular determinants that parasites and viruses utilizes to evade host defenses in the development of novel candidate effective vaccines.
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Assistant Professor, Bacteriology
Section Head, Bacteriology and Mycology
Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Research Interest
As a board-certified Veterinary Diagnostic Microbiologist and case coordinator, I oversee the Bacteriology and Mycology sections of the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (KSVDL). I am involved in assisting veterinarians and their clients, livestock producers, and other stakeholders in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of bacterial and fungal diseases in multiple domestic and wild animal species. I am also an Assistant Professor of Veterinary Microbiology in the department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University. I serve as a co-instructor for the Veterinary Bacteriology and Mycology course (DMP 712) and Principles of Veterinary Immunology course (DMP 705). Both courses are offered in the Spring semester for Sophomore DVM students. My research interests include food animal respiratory & enteric pathogens and host immune responses against them and the development and validation of novel molecular diagnostic methods.
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Associate Professor
Research Interest
My research interests focus on mechanisms of virus-host interactions, viral pathogenesis, improving diagnostic methods and vaccine strategies for diseases relevant to the U.S. swine industry, as well as potential emerging livestock diseases. Specifically, I identify mechanisms to modulate innate and adaptive immune responses to viral pathogens using methodology that combines in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo studies using both cutting-edge and classical techniques to identify patterns, changes, or genes of interest involved in the host response to infection. My goals are to develop new, or modify established, techniques to characterize the host response to viruses at the molecular and cellular levels; to analyze the massive datasets generated by high-throughput genomic experiments to advance the understanding of disease expression and to apply this knowledge towards high-impact products such as the design of novel vaccines and other disease intervention strategies.
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Professor
Vanier & Krause Fellow, Biosecurity Research Institute
Research Interest
The major areas of research include definition of correlates of protection and identification of protective antigens required for development of broadly protective subunit vaccines. To achieve this, efforts are directed at development of prototype subunit vaccines using antigen delivery live vectors capable of eliciting robust immune responses following parenteral and/or mucosal immunization. Safety, immunogenicity, and protective efficacy of the prototype subunit vaccines are evaluated in the actual hosts, such as cattle and pigs, which require protection or suitable animal models.
I am also interested in development and validation of novel antibody-based or engineered protein biotherapeutics. Current efforts are focused on development of a DIVA-compatible subunit vaccines for protection of pigs against African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV), a vector-borne transboundary animal disease that is spreading and threatening swine industry (PLoS One 2016 & 2017; Vet. Micro. 2019; Front. Vet. Sci.,2020; Pathogens, J., 2020; Front. Vet. Sci. 2022). Other areas of research include development of cross-protective subunit vaccines against Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (PLoS One 2017; Front. Immunol. 2020; J. Immunol. 2021) and Bovine Parainfluenza-3 Virus, live-vectored SARS-CoV-2 and Japanese Encephalitis Virus subunit vaccines.
My lab has also been involved in collaborative research that is focused on development of therapeutics against targets such as HIV and SARS-CoV-2, using novel cow antibodies, designated Bovine Ultralong CDR H3 structures (BULS), whose structure and their mechanism for creating diversity have not been seen before in other animals’ antibodies (Wang, F., et al., 2013 Cell 153: 1379-1393; Immunohorizons 2019; and Sok, D., et al., 2017. Nature 548 (7665):108-111; Huang, R. G., et al., 2023. PNAS).
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Associate Professor, Virology
Section head of Diagnostic Virology and Serology
Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Research and Service
I am a veterinarian with advanced training in veterinary microbiology/virology, and my research interests are on viral infectious diseases, their pathogenesis and the development of new diagnostic and preventive methods for these diseases. My service, research and teaching responsibilities are closely interlinked. As Section head of Diagnostic Virology and Serology, I isolate, identify and characterize emerging and re-emerging viral disease agents. Then I develop serological and virological assays for the lab.
Establishing ties with fellow scientists is integral to conducting research directed toward understanding the pathogenesis of diseases and developing innovative tools for rapid diagnosis. Additional collaboration with field veterinarians, producers and researchers fosters the development and evaluation of effective vaccines. In the teaching environment I am further able share my knowledge and experience with viral disease, pathogenesis and prevention methods. Providing classroom instruction for veterinary and graduate students, workshops and seminars with field veterinarians and producers and presentations at scientific meetings are all elements of my teaching responsibilities at KSU. Currently, I am working on an ASF biosecurity project in Eastern Europe and building capacity to prevent spreading of this virus in Asia.
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Regents and University Distinguished Professor
Vanier - Krause BRI Endowed Professorship
Director, Center of Excellence for Emerging and Zoonotic Animal Diseases (CEEZAD)
Director, NIH COBRE Center on Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (CEZID)
Research Interest
The overall goal of Dr. Richt’s research is to investigate zoonotic, emerging and transboundary diseases of livestock focusing mainly on viral diseases. His work on high consequence pathogens led to strategies to identify, control and/or eradicate such agents. Dr. Richt’s research includes studies on animal influenza viruses, animal prion diseases including bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), Rift Valley Fever virus (RVFV), African Swine fever virus (ASFV), SARS-CoV-2 and Borna Disease virus (BDV).
Dr. Richt made seminal contributions to the development of a modified live swine influenza vaccine sold in the U.S. as “Ingelvac Provenza™”, and to understanding the virulence of the reconstructed 1918 “Spanish Flu” virus in livestock. He identified an atypical BSE case with a causative, genetic mutation, and used transgenic approaches to develop the first prion protein knock-out cattle which are resistant to prion infection. His RVFV work led to the development of ruminant models for RVF and a safe, efficacious subunit RVF vaccine. For ASFV, he is developing vaccine candidates as well as point-of-need diagnostic tools (sold as “PenCheckTM”) to protect the swine industry from this devastating disease. Dr. Richt was among the first to characterize BDV and to report the presence of BDV markers in neuropsychiatric patients. Recently, he established preclinical animal models for COVID-19 in cats, deer, hamsters and ferrets to test the efficacy of vaccines and therapeutics. As the founding Director of DHS- and NIH-funded Centers of Excellence, he is supporting NIH, DHS and USDA in protecting U.S. agricultural systems and public health from devastating animal and zoonotic diseases.
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Assistant Professor, DMP/KSVDL
Next Generation Sequencing Section Head, KSVDL
Assistant Director, Molecular and Cell Biology Core (NIH COBRE, Center on Emerging Zoonotic Infectious Diseases)
Research Interest
Dr. Jayme Souza-Neto is an Assistant Professor at the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (KSVDL) and Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology within the College of Veterinary Medicine of Kansas State University. Dr. Souza-Neto is also the Head of the Next Generation Sequencing Section of KSVDL and the Assistant Director of the Molecular and Cell Biology Core in the College. Dr. Souza-Neto is committed to providing outstanding NGS services to support veterinary diagnostics and pathogen identification with both untargeted and targeted sequencing approaches. NGS services are also extended to the scientific community for a wide range of goals, from whole genome sequencing to transcriptomics. In his research efforts, Dr. Souza-Neto is particularly interested in investigating animal and zoonotic pathogens, with focus on the functional genomics of vector-host-pathogen interactions and in the development/implementation of NGS-based tools for pathogen detection and surveillance.
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Interim Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs
Professor, Arbovirology
Research Interest
My research focuses on the interactions and characterization of arboviruses in the mosquito vector and the vertebrate host. I specifically work on high consequence zoonotic arboviruses of medical and veterinary importance at Kansas State’s Biosecurity Research Institute (BRI). Virus families and viruses that I focus on are: Flaviviridae - West Nile (WNV), dengue, Zika (ZIKV), Japanese encephalitis (JEV), and yellow fever viruses; Togaviridae (genus Alphavirus) - chikungunya (CHIKV), Western equine encephalitis, and o’nyong nyong viruses; Bunyaviridae - Cache Valley, Schmallenberg, and Rift Valley fever viruses; and from 2020 to 2023, Coronaviridae - severe acute respiratory syndrome virus (SARS-CoV-2).
In addition to basic research on arbovirus mosquito/host interactions, our group is involved in vaccine research from the initial development stage to testing of vaccines in various small and large animal models; testing vaccines to ensure that they cannot infect and be transmitted by mosquitoes; assessment of risk associated with emerging or reemerging viruses to the U.S., for example, ZIKV, CHIKV, JEV; and understanding the relationship between viral genetic mutations and the epidemic potential in mosquitoes.
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Assistant Professor of Virology and Vaccine Immunology
Research Interest
Dr. Wang possesses about 20 years professional experience in virology, infectious diseases and immunology. He investigates novel vaccines/antivirals, vaccine delivery platforms/adjuvants, diagnostics and assays for measuring vaccine induced immune responses. A large focus of his work is on developing better solutions to control and prevent high consequence human/animal diseases. He has been researching Ebola, Rabies, Dengue fever, and Japanese encephalitis. He is interested in studying African swine fever, Classical swine fever, Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, and other emerging/reemerging infectious diseases.
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