VMBS Hosts Annual VMSRTP Research Symposium
Story by Ainsley Treesh, VMBS Marketing & Communications
Twenty veterinary students celebrated a successful summer of research on Aug. 1 during the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences’ (VMBS) annual Veterinary Medical Scientist Research Training Program (VMSRTP) Research Symposium.
During the symposium, VMSRTP participants— who spent 13 weeks conducting full-time research under the advice and direction of a faculty member — gave 12-minute oral presentations on their work as part of a competition that was judged by faculty members on the VMSRTP Advisory Committee; the two most outstanding oral presenters received $250 book awards, supported by Dr. Larry Suva, a professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology (VTPP).
Alexandra Aucoin, a third-year veterinary student, who worked with Dr. Noah Cohen, a distinguished professor of Equine Internal Medicine, received the Outstanding Clinical Research Presentation Award, and Olivia Jones, a second-year veterinary student, who worked with Dr. Ellie Rahbar, an associate professor in VTPP with a joint appointment in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, received the Outstanding Translational Research Presentation Award.
Cohen was also recognized with the Outstanding VMSRTP Research Mentor award not only for his mentorship this year but also for his longstanding mentorship of numerous students, including Drs. Rebecca Legere and Angela Bordin who are both now assistant professors of equine internal medicine and VMSRTP mentors themselves.
In addition to their oral presentations, students developed poster presentations. Three students received $250 book awards for their poster presentations, which were presented at the 2025 Veterinary Scholars Symposium (VSS) in Spokane, Washington:
- Annabelle Newton, a second-year veterinary student, who worked with Dr. Thomas Edwards, an associate professor in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, received the Outstanding Clinical Research Poster Presentation Award, supported by the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences;
- Abigail Williams, a second-year veterinary student, who worked with Drs. Ashok Shetty, a professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, and Madhu Leelavathi Narayana, a research scientist at the Texas A&M Institute for Regenerative Medicine, received the Outstanding Translational Research Poster Presentation Award, supported by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies; and
- Anna Schmieding, a second-year, veterinary student, who worked with Dr. Guilherme Verocai, a professor in the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology (VTPB), received the Outstanding Epidemiological Research Poster Presentation Award, supported by the Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences.
“Our 20 Texas A&M scholars all gave outstanding presentations of their posters at the VSS, where more than 600 total posters were presented,” said Dr. Dana Gaddy, a professor in the Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences and VMSRTP director. “My fellow directors, Drs. Tracy Vemulapalli and Chuck Long, and I were so pleased to see the knowledge, enthusiasm, and professionalism displayed by each and every one of our scholars. We are so proud with how well they all represented their mentors and laboratories, the VMBS, and Texas A&M. The future is bright with this 2025 VMSRTP cohort of budding veterinarians and veterinarian scientists!”
Three students received competitively awarded funding to participate in this summer’s program:
- Reagan Stephens, a third-year veterinary student who worked with Legere, was funded by a research fellowship from the Morris Animal Foundation;
- Miyu Sakaguchi, an international student who worked with Drs. Caitlin Mencio, an assistant research scientist in VTPB, and Sarah Hamer, a professor in the Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, was funded by Boehringer Ingelheim; and
- Paul Klett, an international student who worked with Dr. Robert Valeris-Chacin, a VTPB assistant professor, also was funded by Boehringer Ingelheim.
The VMBS’ 2+2 DVM program at the Veterinary Education, Research, & Outreach (VERO) Campus in Canyon was represented by Klett and Kourtney Mayfield, a second-year veterinary student who worked with Drs. Paul Morley, a professor in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences (VLCS), and Lee Pinnell, a VLCS research assistant professor.
The VMSRTP’s mission is to introduce veterinary students to research opportunities and careers. If you are interested in participating in the program, visit tx.ag/VMSRTP.
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For more information about the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, please visit our website at vetmed.tamu.edu or join us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216
