The Linda F. Hayward Florida Veterinary Scholars Program (for DVM students)
Summer 2025

The Linda F. Hayward Florida Veterinary Scholars Program (previously the Florida Veterinary Scholars Program) provides an opportunity for veterinary students to engage in hypothesis-driven research over a 10-12 week period. For UF students, this happens between the 1st and 2nd years.  The mission is to expose veterinary students to career opportunities in biomedical research.  This may include Industry (drug development, testing, marketing), Government (CDC, NIH, USDA) and Academia-based paths.

Apply now for the 2025 symposium! See links and due dates below.

Program Dates: May 26, 2025 to August 1, 2025
National Symposium: Spokane, Washington: August 7-9, 2025

This year’s faculty mentors and their research interests:

• Darcy Adin and Liza Koster
  Keywords: Pacemaker interrogation, epicardia, endocardial
  Project title: Examining pacemaker settings in dogs and cats and differences between epicardial vs. endocardial
• Rafael Bisinotto
  Keywords: dairy cattle, agriculture, production medicine, animal reproduction
• Wendy Mandese
  Keywords: respiratory, heartworms, heat-fixed, canine
• Jada Lewis
  Keywords: axolotl, aquatics, proteins, comparative biology
• Helena Zomer
  Keywords: regenerative medicine, skin wound healing, aging, stem cells
• Cleve DeSouza
  Keywords: lymphoid leukemia, myeloid leukemia, machine learning, canine leukemia, phenotyping
  Project: Phenotyping lymphoid vs. myeloid leukemias in dogs using machine learning approaches.
• Chris Vulpe
  Keywords: global warming, heat stress, kidney, AI assisted histopathology, molecular biomarkers
• Heather Walden
  Keywords: parasitology, vector borne disease, feline parasites, avian parasites, diagnostic parasitology
• Rachal Williams
  Keywords: minimally invasive surgery, gastropexy, soft tissue surgery, surgical education
• Chris Martyniuk
  Keywords: aquatic toxicology, perfluorinated chemicals, fish, development
• Chris Martyniuk, Chris Vulpe, Amara Estrada
  Keywords: gene editing, CRISPR, canine, dilated cardiomyopathy
• Sofia Kovacsy and Maria Cadario
  Keywords: mare, endometritis, PRP (platelet-rich plasma), treatment

More projects coming!

2025 Program Director:

• Chris Martyniuk, PhD (Physiological Sciences): Director

2024-2025 FVSP Board Members:

• Apichai Tuanyok, PhD (Infectious Diseases and Immunology)
• Heather Walden, PhD (Comparative, Diagnostic & Population Medicine)
• Domenico Santoro, DVM (Small Animal Clinical Sciences)
• Ramiro Isaza, DVM (Large Animal Clinical Sciences)

With thanks to our sponsors:

• Boehringer Ingelheim
• Morris Animal Foundation
• Florida Veterinary Medical Association

2024 Highlights