Campus & Beyond Me-ow! Celebrating a Half-Century of Helping the Kitties Stories You May Like Student Project Brings ‘Healing and Honoring Garden’ to Akwe:kon Iconic Olin Library ‘Call Board’ to Get a (Literal) Glow-Up Hotelie’s Granola Goes from Dorm Delicacy to Grocery Staple For the Cornell Feline Health Center’s 50th birthday, we round up some of the cat-tastic discoveries it has facilitated Editor’s note: Special thanks to Bruce Kornreich, DVM ’92, PhD ’05, the center’s director, and to Heather Hughes, its assistant director for communications and marketing, for their assistance in compiling this info—and to our colleagues for sharing photos of their cats (even the grumpy ones)! By Beth Saulnier Did you know that the Vet College has a center dedicated to supporting research that improves the health of cats, both wild and domestic? The Cornell Feline Health Center is celebrating its 50th birthday in 2024—marking a half-century of funding scientific work aimed at finding better ways to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease. Here’s a sampling of those accomplishments—plus a clowder of adorable cat photos, courtesy of some adoring pet parents (all of them Big Red staff members)! Pinpointing a Common Cause of Gastro Ailments Many gastrointestinal diseases in both humans and animals are caused by rotaviruses. The first cat-specific version of these highly contagious pathogens was isolated in the lab of the center’s founder, Fred Scott, DVM ’62, PhD ’68. While the feline rotavirus is rarely fatal, it can have severe impacts without proper care. It mainly affects the intestines, making it hard for the body to absorb nutrients. It can cause symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration—especially in kittens or in adults with weakened immune systems. Scott’s work, which was first published in 1981, paved the way for a deeper understanding of feline gastro diseases, allowing researchers to develop better treatments and preventive measures. Avoiding Blindness Following Dental Procedures When cats are anesthetized for dentistry, spring-loaded devices are sometimes used to keep their mouths open—but in rare cases, that has been known to lead to blindness. Using cutting-edge imaging, researchers in the 2010s determined that this phenomenon is caused by a temporary blockage of the blood supply to the brain, due to the mouth being held open too widely and for too long. The work has had an immediate clinical impact—prompting vets to change the way they use the devices, or avoid them altogether. Helping to Breed Cheetahs in Captivity In the 2010s, researchers supported by the center developed a test that measures a hormone, produced by the ovaries of female cats, that’s important in feline reproduction. The test—for anti-Müllerian hormone, or AMH—is now being used to determine the fertility of female cheetahs prior to considering them for the captive breeding program at Namibia’s Cheetah Conservation Fund. Improving Understanding of FIP The common feline coronavirus usually causes only mild GI issues—but in 5–10% of cases, a mutation leads to a life-threatening disease called feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). Researchers have been at the forefront of improving understanding of the molecular mechanism of how the coronavirus mutates and causes FIP. Their many previous and ongoing studies have far-reaching implications—not only for improving the ability to diagnose, treat, and prevent FIP in cats, but for coronavirus infections in other species, including humans. Understanding When a Common Antibiotic Can Be Toxic The antibiotic chloramphenicol is effective in treating a variety of feline infections—but it can cause serious side effects, particularly at higher doses and when given for prolonged periods. That toxicity stems from the fact that it can harm the bone marrow. This sometimes leads to aplastic anemia (in which the marrow stops producing enough red and white blood cells), resulting in severe fatigue, weakness, and vulnerability to infections. Researchers conducted the first studies of chloramphenicol toxicity in the 1970s, helping to understand how cats metabolize the drug and establishing safe dosages for feline patients. Gaining Insights on HIV and More—Thanks to a Wild Cat Stories You May Like Student Project Brings ‘Healing and Honoring Garden’ to Akwe:kon Iconic Olin Library ‘Call Board’ to Get a (Literal) Glow-Up Lentiviruses, which affect the immune system, are a family of viruses that includes HIV and its related feline version, FIV. Treatment and prevention of both HIV and FIV could benefit from researchers’ successful isolation, in the mid-1990s, of a previously unknown lentivirus in a Pallas’ cat, a wild species found in central Asia. Such work helps scientists understand how these viruses spread and affect the immune system—not only informing development of vaccines and therapies, but highlighting potential cross-species transmission risks, which could help prevent future zoonotic outbreaks. Ensuring Food Safety A growing number of owners are giving their cats raw food without realizing that it may harbor bacteria that can be harmful—both to the kitties and to those feeding them. In an ongoing study designed to better characterize this risk, researchers are using advanced molecular biological sequencing techniques to screen commercially available raw cat foods for bacterial pathogens. Preliminary results have identified a broad range of potentially harmful bacteria in many of the foods, and those results are being entered into the NIH’s Pathogen Detection database. Mapping the Feline Brain To diagnose diseases of the brain, it’s vital to first establish what the organ normally looks like. Using MRI technology, researchers have dramatically improved the ability to diagnose and treat brain disorders in cats: in the late 2010s, they announced the creation of the first MRI-based map of the white matter—involved in the transmission of information—of the normal feline brain. Working Toward Better Oral Health As many owners know, periodontal diseases—caused by inflammation of the gums, lips, tongue, and the teeth’s supporting structures—are very common in cats. While the complex mechanisms behind that inflammation are not yet fully understood, researchers have used cutting-edge molecular biologic techniques to gain insight into them, as the first step toward developing improved ways to treat and prevent them. Fighting Viral Threats to Big Cats Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a danger not only to domestic dogs, but also to wild canine and feline species. After identifying evidence of CDV infections in endangered tiger and leopard populations in Nepal, researchers are studying them in an effort to develop prevention strategies. Creating an AI that Entertains—and Informs You’ve heard of ChatGPT—but how about the feline version? In early 2024, the center launched an AI-powered chatbot focused on cat-related issues. Dubbed (what else?) CatGPT, it’s aimed at connecting owners with credible, science-based information in a new and fun way. Users can ask the chatbot questions about their pet, get answers quickly, ask follow-up questions—and even play games. (Cat photos provided by Alex Bayer, Patience Benassi, Alexandra Bond ’12, Amy Bond, Zac Doob, Matt Fondeur, Joel Malina, Nicki Moore, and Beth Saulnier.) Published October 8, 2024 Comments N. Laura Middleton, MD 16 Oct, 2024 I’m pretty sure the cat in the picture is not a cheetah…… I AM concerned about feline hyperesthesia syndrome. Two weeks ago I had my 12 yo tortoiseshell euthanized because of the horrible episodes of hissing, growling, screaming, and chasing her tail in spite of treatment with gabapentin and buprenorphine. I’m wondering if she were human and could describe her pain, we could find a nerve block or maybe a cerebral implant that could relieve it. Reply Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. 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