GRADUATE STUDENTS (MS + PHD)

U.S. Senator Phil Gramm Fellowship Awarded to VMBS Doctoral Student

Caitlin Castaneda, a doctoral student in the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences’ Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences (VIBS), was awarded a U.S. Senator Phil Gramm Fellowship by the Texas A&M University Graduate and Professional School.

The U.S. Senator Phil Gramm Fellowships are given annually by the Texas A&M University Graduate and Professional School to outstanding current doctoral students whose excellence in both research and teaching exemplifies the meaning of scholarship and mentorship in the highest sense. The fellowship includes a $5,000 award to help the winners continue their studies.

Castaneda’s research primarily focuses on stallion fertility and the search for the genes that impact it. As part of that research, she’s been working on an assembly of the Y chromosome, something that Dr. Brian Davis, assistant professor in VIBS, said is unique.

In 2012, the molecular cytogenetics lab discovered the first gene associated with stallion fertility, and as a result of Castaneda’s work, a diagnostic test for stallion subfertility was published in FY21. However, discovery of the actual causative mutation remains a goal to achieve.

“We’re hoping to find more genes and then create more diagnostic tests so that when horses come through the clinic, we can have a molecular screening for fertility genetics in addition to the routine breeding soundness exam,” Castaneda said.

This has potentially huge implications in the equine industry, in which stallion fertility is of significant economic interest. Down the road, Castaneda hopes to bring what she’s learned in animal medicine to research in human fertility, as well.

In addition to her proven skills as a researcher—having authored eight publications, including three as the first author—she has also impacted a number of students as a teacher and mentor.

VMBS Research Enterprise

The school’s research enterprise continues to diversify. The VMBS’ annual research expenditures for FY22 were over $39 million dollars. This is a direct result of the success and quality of the faculty, whose research ranges from basic science to clinical applications. The faculty’s commitment to cutting-edge translational research seeks to bridge the gap between the basic and clinical sciences and the commitment to innovation is highlighted by an active pursuit of technology licensing and commercialization.

Research Funding

Excellence in research at the VMBS is evidenced, in part, by the millions of dollars obtained annually in extramural funding by our faculty members. School investigators have obtained significant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Defense (DoD), Department of the Interior (DoI), multiple private foundations, industry, and the state of Texas during recent years.

FY22 Research Highlights:

• Dr. Weston Porter received two NIH R01 awards totaling $4,272,507. One was to study “Mitophagy Dependent Regulation of Mammary Gland Differentiation” and the other was for “Circadian Regulation of Cellular Homeostasis”

• Dr. William Murphy received a NSF research award for $1,200,000 to engage in research on “Understanding the Co-Evolution of Phylogenomic Signal, Gene Linkage, and Recombination Rate Through Comparative Genomics”.

• Dr. Scott Dindot was named a Chancellor’s Enhancing Development and Generating Excellence in Scholarship (EDGES) Fellow.

• Dr. Joerg Steiner was named a Texas A&M University Regents Professor.

• Dr. Yifei Liao, a former doctoral student with Dr. Blanca Lupiani, received the Texas A&M Distinguished Dissertation Award for his dissertation work entitled, “Functional interaction between Merek's Disease Virus Us3 and Meq with chicken CCREB and histone deacetylases”.

VMBS Patents and Invention Disclosures

The VMBS research enterprise is on the cutting-edge of licensing, commercialization, and patents related to their research findings. Since 2016, VMBS researchers have reported 58 invention disclosures, 119 patent applications, and 39 issued patents.

FY22 Faculty by Department & Title