INTERNATIONAL CANINE HEALTH AWARDS Awards Presentation 24th May 2017 Supported by the Vernon & Shirley Hill Foundation Administrated by the Kennel Club Charitable Trust
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We are proud to support these important Awards again, to fund research that may transform canine and human health by encouraging the same visionary thinking and innovation that Metro Bank champions. At Metro Bank, Dogs Rule. Vernon Hill Founder and Chairman of Metro Bank whose major gift underwrites the International Canine Health Awards
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The Kennel Club Charitable Trust has supported many veterinary scientists in their clinical research aimed at improving canine health. There are many scientists who endeavour to find solutions that will give our dogs a healthier future. We want to make sure that these people are recognised and acknowledged. Thanks to the generous funding from Vernon and Shirley Hill, the International Canine Health Awards honour and reward the endeavours of some very talented individuals who have demonstrated a capacity for being innovative scientists. We hope that by publically acknowledging their research others will be encouraged to take up the challenge, and in time may also come forward for an International Canine Health Award. Professor Steve Dean Chairman of the Trustees of the Kennel Club Charitable Trust Registered Charity No. 327802
INTERNATIONAL AWARD WINNER Dr Oliver Garden Henry and Corinne R Bower Professor of Medicine Chair, Department of Clinical Studies at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania (Penn Vet) Undertaking extensive post graduate training in both the UK and the United States, Dr Garden has gained an excellent international reputation as a small animal internist and immunologist. He is one of very few veterinarians of his generation that has successfully combined an outstanding clinical career with a strong basic research focus. Professor Garden s research programmes into canine cancer immunology and autoimmune disease has advanced the field of canine gastrointestinal immunology and immunogenetics. He is wholly committed to turning clinical observation on canine immune mediated disease into pivotal research and his work has led to the development of novel diagnostic and prognostic testing in canine multicentric B cell lymphoma based on characterisation of regulatory T cells in the dog. With a real passion for sharing knowledge of canine medicine, he has taught generations of veterinary students, mentored over 100 postgraduate students and has recently championed a world-wide initiative to develop Veterinary Clinical Immunology into a medical specialty, bringing together almost 200 specialists from around the world to form a new Clinical Immunology Special Interest Group. Professor Garden s work has significantly advanced canine research over the past two decades. He continues to inspire clinical staff into research projects and works tirelessly with a growing, vibrant research team dedicated to progressing the knowledge of canine health.
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNER Professor Paul McGreevy Professor of Animal Behaviour and Animal Welfare Science at the Faculty of Veterinary Science University of Sydney Sydney University s first Professor of Animal Welfare, Professor McGreevy, is not only the author of six books and more than 200 peer reviewed papers, he is also one of the few academic veterinarians working in canine behaviour. His sustained contributions to animal welfare are outstanding, and he is a leading advocate for improvement in dog care, through books, apps and media appearances. An epidemiological approach to studying inherited disorders helped Professor McGreevy to establish a cutting-edge disorder-surveillance system now in place in both the UK and Australia. VetCompass has become the global benchmark tool for surveying such disorders, gathering data on 5.8 million animals and holding details of over 36 million episodes of veterinary care. Epidemiological analyses of this data has produced an impressive tally of peer-reviewed findings, including definitive studies of longevity and disease prevalence in dogs. Professor McGreevy s research has been significant and varied. It has looked into, amongst other things; how anatomic morphology affects health and welfare, canine dementia and a means to diagnose Canine Cognitive Dysfunction, predicting suitability of guide-dogs for training, ideal living conditions to give best results in farm dogs, limitations of communication with dogs, how canine head shape alters behaviour, and how optimism in dogs can be measured. Professor McGreevy s research is exciting and ground breaking and his output on training, behaviour and breeding is remarkable, but it is his passion for dogs and their welfare that truly distinguishes him.
STUDENT INSPIRATION WINNER (POSTGRADUATE) Andrea Strakova Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge. Andrea has a strong interest in understanding the canine transmissible venereal tumour (CTVT), an extraordinary contagious cancer that affects thousands of dogs. Beginning as a tumour in one single dog that lived around 11,000 years ago, instead of dying with its host, CTVT took on a life of its own, spreading to other dogs during mating. Around one per cent of the global dog population suffer distressing genital tumours caused by the cancer. It is one of the most common cancers, surviving as a clonal cell lineage until today. Andrea s PhD aims to map the genetic and phenotypic diversity of CTVT worldwide. Collaborating with veterinarians around the world, collecting and validating almost 2,000 CTVT samples from 55 different countries, she has performed DNA sequencing to catalogue CTVT genetic diversity. From her findings she constructed a phylogenetic tree that traces the global spread of CTVT and how it was perhaps transported along ocean trade routes, helping us to understand the historical movement of dogs. Andrea s inspiring work has revealed important insights to the long-term evolution of the disease, contributing to the understanding of cancer, both in humans and dogs. Enthusiastic Andrea plans to undertake post-doctoral research to understand how CTVT evades the immune system despite being a foreign graft, and to further understand chemotherapy resistant strains by undertaking innovative research. Driven by an enormous commitment for her subject, Andrea has the potential to become a leader in canine cancer research and motivate the next generation of veterinary students to perform research that makes a difference for canine health.
STUDENT INSPIRATION WINNER (UNDERGRADUATE) Harriet Davenport University of Liverpool A strong student with an aptitude for practical work and research, Harriet is currently in her third year of studying Veterinary Science at the University of Liverpool. The hardworking undergraduate has applied for a summer studentship to further investigate whether canine papillomaviruses may be implicated in the development of canine oral tumours, in particular tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma. Previous studies have not found papillomavirus, but they have only used techniques which are likely to have a low sensitivity. Funding from this award will support Harriet in her continued studies and add an innovative enhancement to her summer research project, which would help to advance our understanding of this disease for canine patients and, in the context of One Health, further investigate canine tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma as a model for human pharyngeal cancer. A dedicated student, Harriet always wants to expand her horizons and seek answers to the questions she has discovered. She plans to study for an intercalated degree in immunity and infection at the Imperial College, London, to further broaden her knowledge and prepare her for a career in veterinary research focusing on either immunology or oncology.
The Kennel Club Charitable Trust (KCCT) is an independent charity, reporting to the Charity Commission (Registered Charity no. 327802). It was founded in 1987, since when it has awarded grants totalling more than 10 million towards making a difference for dogs, the charity s principal aim and tagline. During 2016, the Trust distributed more than 800,000 in grants to a wide variety of applicants. The KCCT awards grants across four main areas: Science: research into canine health problems Support: the training of dogs to help human beings Welfare: the rescue and welfare of dogs in need of care and attention Education: the use of dogs as a literacy and behavioural aid for children Our support of science and reaching into canine health problems accounts for more than half of the money awarded by the KCCT. Over 250,000 was granted to support the Kennel Club Genetics Centre at the Animal Health Trust, the third year of a research agreement between the AHT and KCCT. The Kennel Club Cancer Centre was also the recipient of a significant grant. The KCCT funds a range of other scientific work to improve pedigree dog health. In 2016, the trustees agreed a grant of 8,880 to help fund research into A New Approach to Finding the Genetic Basis of Juvenile Kidney Disease in Boxers, which will be carried out by Professor William Amos of the Department of Zoology at the University of Cambridge and Dr Bruce M Cattanach from the MRC Mammalian Genetics Unit in Harwell, Oxfordshire. In addition, the Trust provides regular donations to veterinary universities and student bursaries through the BVNA.
A big thank you to Vernon and Shirley Hill for their generous gift in underwriting these Awards. ~ ~ ~ ~ Working together we can help achieve the Kennel Club s overall objective of making a difference for dogs. ~ ~ ~ ~ For information on past winners and background to the Awards, please visit: www.thekennelclub.org.uk/our-resources/international-canine-health-awards