Suchodolski Received Prestigious EEC Award

COLLEGE STATION, TX - The European Emesis Council (EEC) presented Dr. Jan Suchodolski, clinical assistant professor and associate director of the GI lab at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVM), with the award for 2009 Best Publication in Small Animal Gastroenterology for his research article: "The effect of the macrolide antibiotic tylosin on microbial diversity in the canine small intestine as demonstrated by massive parallel 16S rRNA gene sequencing." The award was presented at the European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine-Companion Animals (ECVIM-CA) congress in Toulouse, France on September 11. The award was presented to Suchodolski by EEC member Dr. Reito Neiger and Dr. Karine Savary-Bataille from Pfizer Animal Health, which supports the Council both financially and administratively.  

Suchodolski is the second recipient of this award as it was initiated last year. Criteria are reviewed by members of the EEC in all publications of small animal gastroenterology, and a piece is chosen based on the following: originality, clinical applicability, and pertinence to small animal medicine. The winner receives a free entrance to the ECVIM-CA congress.   

EEC consists of a group of leading veterinary specialists from the European Union who meet several times a year to review and discuss current issues that are relevant to canine emesis. EEC's goal is to contribute toward improved professional understanding of canine emesis because it is a common symptom for many health problems. 

The purpose of his study was to evaluate the effects of Tylosin, an antibiotic that is successful in treating chronic diarrhea in canines, but its exact effects and mode of action remain unknown. Suchodolski notes that his results did not provide the answers they were looking for, because their findings discovered that the bacteria within the intestines are much more complex and are on a larger scale than was previously recorded. 

"After doing the research we learned that every animal has an individual response to Tylosin," explained Suchodolski. "We used to look at bacteria using culture methods; however what we now know is that culture is completely underestimated to total bacteria counts. The more we studied, the more we realized that there is more to learn to understand gastrointestinal microbial ecology. Even though we did not find the result we had intended to, this research changed our perspective, and it helped us to re-focus our efforts so we can continue with a more specific approach." 

Suchodolski received his D.V.M. from the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria in 1997 and he received his Ph.D. in Veterinary Microbiology from Texas A&M University in 2005. Suchodolski joined the CVM as a research assistant in 1999. 

"I am speechless to have received this award," said Suchodolski. "The panel was comprised of several renowned clinicians and gastroenterologists and I feel honored that they voted for our manuscript. I feel honored and elated." 

Dr. Reito Neiger, EEC member, presented the award to Dr. Jan Suchodolski

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