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VMBS, VERO Researchers Honored for Outstanding Research

A group of researchers and graduate students pose together in front of a CRWAD conference backdrop, smiling toward the camera.
Texas A&M researchers and graduate students gather at the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases (CRWAD).

Student and faculty researchers from the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) earned multiple awards while presenting research at the 106th Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases (CRWAD).

A total of 25 VMBS scientists attended the CRWAD 2026 from Jan. 17-20 and presented their research among more than 500 other presentations. Three of the VMBS departments were represented as well as representatives from the Veterinary Education, Research, and Outreach (VERO) program, located in Canyon, Texas.

VMBS scientists brought home four awards recognizing their outstanding presentations:

  • Dr. Ingrid Maribel Leon Moreno, a post-doctoral research associate advised by Drs. H Morgan Scott and Keri Norman, received the Post-Doctoral Researcher award for her presentation, “Phagocytic uptake and intracellular replication of fluorescently modified Salmonella Newport and Lubbock.”
  • Valeria Lugo-Mesa, a Ph.D. student at VERO, received an award from the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists (ACVM) Oral Presentation Award for her presentation, “Copper sulfate treatment and effects on biofiltration in saltwater aquaria.”
  • Kayla Hazlett, a Ph.D. student at VERO, received an award for her presentation, “Beyond the flavor: Shotgun metagenomics for functional insights and MAG recovery in bovine liver abscesses,” From the Enteric Diseases of Food Animals section.
  • Harley Henderson, a Ph.D. student at VERO, received an award from the Association for Veterinary Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (AVEPM) award for her presentation, “Microbial profiling of Mycoplasma bovis associated with polymicrobial infections in feedlot cattle mortalities.”

In addition to student and post-doctoral awards, Dr. Paul Morley, professor and director of research at the VERO program, was inducted as a CRWAD Fellow at the conference in recognition of his long-standing contributions to the conference and the animal disease research community.

Also among the presentations was a keynote address titled “Through the Looking Glass: Epidemiology, Policy, and Practice in Reverse” given by Scott, a Texas A&M professor of veterinary epidemiology.

In total, VMBS members delivered 27 presentations at the conference, including 15 presentations by VERO researchers and seven working in College Station.

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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 X.

Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216


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