{"id":3091,"date":"2010-09-25T11:46:18","date_gmt":"2010-09-25T18:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/?p=3091"},"modified":"2025-01-22T08:06:27","modified_gmt":"2025-01-22T16:06:27","slug":"wsus-school-of-molecular-biosciences-joins-the-college-of-veterinary-medicine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/2010\/09\/25\/wsus-school-of-molecular-biosciences-joins-the-college-of-veterinary-medicine\/","title":{"rendered":"WSU\u2019s School of Molecular Biosciences Joins the College of Veterinary Medicine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Web Extra<\/span><\/p>\n

by Marcia Hill Gossard \u201999, \u201904 Ph.D. | Photos by Henry Moore Jr.<\/em><\/p>\n

For the past seven years Dr. Mike Konkel, professor in the School for Molecular Biosciences<\/a>, and Dr. Doug Call, professor in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology<\/a>, have been working together to find answers about how to better control some of the most serious disease causing bacteria found in our food supply.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe the best work comes from collaboration,\u201d said Dr. Konkel. \u201cThe key for us is we complement each other well. We have overlapping interests, but different expertise and are willing to be flexible and accommodate each other. That\u2019s what makes a collaboration like ours last for so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMike is one of the leading Campylobacter<\/em> investigators in the world,\u201d said Dr. Call. \u201cIt is a privilege to work with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Drawing on each other\u2019s expertise, they study two food-borne pathogens\u2014Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni)<\/em> and Vibrio parahaemolyticus (V. parahaemolyticus)<\/em>\u2014both of which cause gastrointestinal infections with symptoms including diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting that can sometimes result in death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the United States alone, food-borne pathogens cause an estimated 76 million illnesses and 5,000 deaths each year.<\/p>\n

\n

“I believe the best work comes from collaboration.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014Dr. Mike Konkel, WSU professor in the School of Molecular Biosciences<\/p>\n

\n

Dr. Konkel has been a leading expert on C. jejuni<\/em> for nearly two decades. Often found in poultry, it is the most commonly reported bacterial cause of diarrhea worldwide. In the United States alone, the CDC estimates that more than 2 million cases of Campylobacter<\/em> infection occur each year with approximately 100 deaths.<\/p>\n

V. parahaemolyticus<\/em>, one of Dr. Call\u2019s research focuses, is found in marine life and transferred to humans primarily through the consumption of raw or under-cooked seafood. The CDC estimates roughly 4,500 cases of V. parahaemolyticus<\/em> infection each year, but the number of cases reported is much lower because surveillance is complicated due to under reporting.<\/p>\n

Although both these bacteria commonly found in our food supply can make humans sick, they do not normally cause disease in animals.<\/p>\n

Around the lab, Campylobacter jejuni<\/em> is often referred to by its easier-to-pronounce nickname \u201cCampy<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCampy<\/em> causes disease in humans, but is normal flora in the gastrointestinal tract of chickens,\u201d explained Dr. Konkel. \u201cCollaborating with Doug has allowed us to examine the differences in the responses of human and chicken cells to the bacteria.\u201d<\/p>\n

By using different types of cells they are able to better understand why humans, but not chickens, develop disease from the bacteria. And knowing that may one day provide an answer that will help prevent human illness and even death.<\/p>\n

Dr. Konkel believes a good understanding of basic science is necessary for finding solutions to real-world problems. A year and a half ago, he also began collaborating with Dr. Steve Simasko, professor and chair of the Department of Veterinary and Comparative Anatomy, Pharmacology, and Physiology<\/a> (now, the Department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience). The two have been working to better understand neuro-immune interactions in the gastrointestinal tract related to the vagus nerve, which travels from the brain all the way to the colon.<\/p>\n

Dr. Steve Simasko and Dr. Mike Konkel research the cause of inflammatory responses in the digestive system.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a project that neither of us could do alone,\u201d said Dr. Simasko. \u201cNeither of us has the expertise to do this research without the other\u2019s training and background. That\u2019s the magic of collaboration.\u201d<\/p>\n

With better understanding about how infection activates the vagus nerve\u2014and how the vagus controls inflammation\u2014it could lead to clues about inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn\u2019s disease, which are currently not well controlled with standard treatment.<\/p>\n

Over the years, these collaborative efforts have also greatly benefited graduate student education and postdoctoral research. For instance, experiments can be designed to answer questions from different perspectives, many of which would not have been able to be conducted otherwise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking collaboratively exposes you to research topics and ideas that you may not encounter in your own lab,\u201d said Jason Neal-McKinney, a doctoral candidate in the SMB.<\/p>\n

Collaboration between neuroscience, microbiology, and immunology helps to train students to be more competitive as they leave school to do their own research.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel that these types of collaborations are vital for the advancement of my career as a neuroscientist,\u201d said Tim Riley, a doctoral candidate in the Veterinary and Comparative Anatomy, Pharmacology, and Physiology department.<\/p>\n

Since the School of Molecular Biosciences joined the college on July 1, 2010, it has created a larger group of biomedical research scientists and a greater pool of resources. Once the new Veterinary Medical Research Building, which will be adjoined to the Biotechnology\/Life Sciences building that houses the School of Molecular Biosciences, is complete at the end of 2012, collaborative efforts between Veterinary and Comparative Anatomy, Pharmacology, and Physiology and the School of Molecular Biosciences will be even easier.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow that we are all on the same team, it further reduces barriers to collaboration. And the proximity of the building will also help,\u201d said Dr. Simasko.<\/p>\n

\u201cCombining resources with veterinary medicine will make us more competitive nationally,\u201d said Dr. Konkel. \u201cThrough collaboration I believe answers to some of the most important questions in biomedical research will be found.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the past seven years Dr. Mike Konkel, professor in the School for Molecular Biosciences, and Dr. Doug Call, professor in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, have been working together to find answers about how to better control some of the most serious disease causing bacteria found in our food supply.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe the best work comes from collaboration,\u201d said Dr. Konkel. \u201cThe key for us is we complement each other well. We have overlapping interests, but different expertise and are willing to be flexible and accommodate each other. That\u2019s what makes a collaboration like ours last for so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1015,"featured_media":3103,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_wsuwp_accessibility_report":[]},"categories":[511,549,541,557],"tags":[619,614],"wsuwp_university_location":[332],"wsuwp_university_org":[425,475,476],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3091"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1015"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3091"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3091\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3107,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3091\/revisions\/3107"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3091"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_location?post=3091"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_org","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_org?post=3091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}