Comparative Pathology Laboratory

After 12 years with the Comparative Pathology Laboratory and 7 years as Director, I will be stepping down effective September 30th, 2025. Leading this team has been one of the greatest privileges of my career. I’m deeply grateful to our staff, trainees, faculty collaborators, SVM leaders, campus partners, and valued clients for our shared commitment to excellence, on behalf of the animals in teaching and research and the scientific breakthroughs that we all help to advance.

We, at CPL, have achieved so much during my tenure and these are a few of our accomplishments that I am most proud of:

Fiscal: Deficit recovery, revenue diversification and financial stability in spite of staff reductions, pandemic-driven restrictions and nationwide reductions in federal research funding.

Staff: 2-time winner of the campus-wide Laboratory Safety Award. Selected for the AAVMC Leadership Academy, UC Women’s Initiative, SVM Talent Benchstrength program and Staff Assembly and Work-life Balance awards.

Operations: Updated facilities, automated processes, and created an online client portal, staff dashboard and operations platform.

Science: Formalized CPL as an animal research core by consolidating and connecting dispersed resources. Independently advanced research in spontaneous diseases of research animals while supporting and strengthening the work of colleagues, resulting in over 45 peer-reviewed publications in notable journals. Including the new 5th edition of Pathology of Laboratory Rodents and Rabbits!

Education: Founded a well-regarded, competitive fellowship in Comparative Pathology. Expanded a web-based seminar series to reach >300 global participants in academia, industry and government.

The interim transition period will be guided by our Associate Director. The search for a new Director will open next year, in early 2026. Operational continuity is a priority and will continue uninterrupted.

Thank you again for this opportunity to serve. I have learned and grown so much with this team. I am confident in and excited for our collective future!

Dr. Laura Janke, Director of the Comparative Pathology Core at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital joins us to share her work modeling pediatric lymphoma and leukemia in mouse models at the UCD School of Medicine Grand Rounds and at Biomedical Research Awareness Day. Dr. Tania Carvalho, Head of the Histopathology platform at Champalimaud Foundation in Lisbon, chose to spend her 4-month sabbatical with us. We are so fortunate to be hosting these two powerhouses!!

At the UC Davis ACVP Alumni & Friends Reception, inspired alumni and friends donated to the Peter C Kennedy endowment. PCK supports veterinary pathologists in graduate research training programs who are studying the spontaneous diseases of veterinary species. This is one of the only funding sources of its kind and critical to supporting the advancement of veterinary science. As a grateful former recipient of the endowment, Dr. Denise Imai-Leonard is the faculty sponsor and event host. If you would like to attend the reception next year, please contact her directly. See you in NOLA!

The Lab Animal and Research Club visited us this morning, for a mouse necropsy wet lab to understand not only the process, but to learn the skills and different approaches that apply to diagnostic versus experimental necropsies.