Zoonotic Infectious Disease conference planned

Bird flu….small-pox…. plague…. These dangerous diseases conjure apocalyptic images in the minds of many – and with good reason.

While modern medical science has made enormous progress in controlling infectious diseases over the past half-century, the battle rages on. Pathogenic viruses and bacteria still represent an ever-present danger to people and animals.

Faculty members from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine will present a day-long continuing education course on “Emerging & Re-emerging Infectious Diseases of Man & Animals”on Saturday, April 22 on the college’s Virginia Tech campus.

Designed for veterinarians, physicians, and members of the general public who wish to learn more about the characteristics of infectious disease agents that might be used as agents of bioterrorism, the workshop will feature virologists, bacteriologists, epidemiologists and other scientists associated with the college’s Center for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases (CIMMID) and clinical departments.

Topics and disease agents slated for discussion include Avian Influenza H5N1, small-pox, plague, Brucella, Foot and Mouth Disease, transmissible spongiform encephalopathies that cause disease such as “Mad Cow,” and other food and water-borne bio-threat viruses.

Faculty members participating in the event include Dr. Thomas Toth, professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology; Dr. Nammalwar Sriranganathan, professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology; Dr. Willard H. Eyestone, research associate professor, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences; Dr. X. J. Meng, associate professor, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences; and Dr. Francois Elvinger, associate professor, DLACS; and Dr. F. William Pierson, professor, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences.

Sponsored by the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine and Virginia Tech’s Office of Continuing and Professional Education, the conference will feature seven contact hours of continuing education (.7 continuing education units). There is a $95 registration fee that includes lectures, refreshments, lunch, handouts and continuing education credits.

For more information, contact Anne Cinsavich in the college at 540-231-5261 or register on-line