Advances in Immunology and Microbiology Seminar Series: Steven Winter

About the event

Featuring research in the areas of:

Epidemiology | Infectious Disease | Disease Ecology | Drug Discovery | Virology |

Global Health | Vector-Borne Disease | Pathology

The Advances in Immunology & Microbiology seminar series is a weekly forum that brings together scientists from diverse fields and disciplines across the College of Veterinary Medicine to discuss research advances in the broad areas of immunology, microbiology, infectious diseases, and global health. Seminars feature student speakers from the Immunology & Infectious Disease (IID) doctoral program, IID-affiliated postdoctoral researchers and faculty, intramural speakers from across the university, and extramural speakers.

PRESENTER: Steven Winter, MS, PhD Candidate; Advisor: Margaret Wild, WSU

TITLE: Associations between Trace Minerals and Treponeme-associated Hoof Disease (TAHD) in Elk

ABSTRACT: Treponeme-associated hoof disease (TAHD) is a debilitating disease of free-ranging elk (Cervus canadensis) that was first identified in Washington state and has now been detected in four US states. Early investigations into the disease identified low trace mineral levels in a small number of TAHD-affected elk, calling to question the contribution of trace minerals to the occurrence and progression of TAHD. Because minerals serve important roles in immune function and hoof health, we hypothesized that low mineral concentrations would be associated with disease. This seminar highlights findings from trace mineral analysis of different sample types from free-ranging elk and discusses some difficulties in understanding associations between mineral status and diseases in wildlife.