Division of Comparative Medicine and Research (DCM&R)

The core mission within the Division of Comparative Medicine and Research (DCM&R) in the Department of Pathobiology is divided into three specific activities:

One - Veterinary Clinical, Pathology, Diagnostic Services, and Regulatory Support:

Pathobiology faculty and veterinary residents within University Laboratory Animal Resources (ULAR) provide veterinary and diagnostic support to investigators throughout the University of Pennsylvania.

Our faculty veterinarians are experts in the comparative medical needs and health care for various animal species, including rodents (mice and rats), non-human primates, dogs, cats, guinea pigs, rabbits, hamsters, birds, and amphibians.

ULAR’s comparative medicine specialists hold advanced degrees in veterinary medicine and science. They are responsible for the care, welfare, and oversight of all research and teaching animals owned by the University of Pennsylvania. All ULAR veterinarians are boarded by their specialty colleges, either ACLAM or ACVP. Our laboratory animal pathologists specifically support rodent diagnostic services, biosecurity, and delivery of necropsy and histopathology services for research animals and exotic species provided through affiliate partnerships.

For these institutional service roles, ULAR veterinary specialists receive faculty support through the Department of Pathobiology and report through the Attending Veterinarian/Executive Director of ULAR & Associate Vice Provost for Research to the Senior Vice Provost for Research, Penn’s Institutional Official. The organization's structure meets the expectations of legal mandates and federal guidelines for the housing, care, and well-being of research animals.

ULAR veterinary specialists are assisted by a team of talented veterinary technicians, who are essential for additional support to the animal research community. These technicians have expertise in veterinary medical care and anesthesia of various species and are available for fee-for-service assistance to research teams.

Two - Training of Veterinary Students and Residents:

ULAR faculty specialists and support staff from ULAR instruct veterinary students in a diverse range of subjects, including animal biology, medicine, and diseases, by providing didactic courses in the School of Veterinary Medicine.

Our faculty teaches veterinary students about research animals, their biology, diseases, and career paths in comparative medicine. We also cover the rules and ethics for using animals in research. These topics are part of the core curriculum, but students can explore more through electives, fellowships, and clinical rotations.

Additional opportunities for students in the field of Comparative Medicine

Summer fellowships at Penn: We offer summer fellowships for students who want to learn more about animal research and clinical laboratory animal medicine. These fellowships are available to students who have completed their second year in vet school. Calls for applications typically go out to the student body in early winter. Contact James Marx, DVM, PhD, with any questions.
Other schools also offer summer fellowships.
Clinical rotations: We offer two- and three-week veterinary student clinical rotations for students from Penn and other veterinary schools. Rotations are generally scheduled for the fall semester. Contact James Marx, DVM, PhD, with any questions or to schedule an external rotation.
Work-study: We also offer work-study opportunities for Penn pre-veterinary students. Please contact James Marx, DVM, PhD, for questions about these opportunities.
Lab Animal Medicine elective: This is a three-week, eight-session course going into more detail on the care and medical procedures commonly done in biomedical research, offered to third-year veterinary students. Please get in touch with Emily Miedel, VMD, for more details.
NJAALAS Lab Animal Scholarship: This scholarship is awarded to New Jersey residents attending a New Jersey, New York, or Pennsylvania institution and pursuing lab animal science. Learn more about the scholarship.
J.J. Noonan Scholarship: This scholarship is presented to students from schools in the Delaware Valley to support them in furthering their laboratory animal science education. Find out more about the J.J. Noonan Scholarship.
Veterinary Resident Training: Since 2006, our team has maintained a three-year residency training program in Laboratory Animal Medicine. This training program meets all the criteria for recognition by the AVMA specialty organization, the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM), and accepts two new trainees annually. Additional information about our program is available at the ACLAM ASLAP LAM Training Program website—our program participants in the Veterinary Internship and Residency Match Program (VIRMP). For more information, please get in touch with Blythe Philips, VMD.

Three - Biomedical/Clinical Research and Consulting with Researchers Using Models of Animal Disease and Disorders:

Our faculty veterinarians and residents consult and advise research staff on improving their experimental models and may participate in collaborative research projects.

Significant areas of comparative medicine & research interest within the ULAR faculty group include pathogenesis of infectious disease, improvements in the anesthesia of rodents, surgical models in large animal species, aquatics and amphibians, musculoskeletal physiology, rodent virology, improvements in research animal husbandry, veterinary care of immunodeficient small and large animals, and organ transplantation immunobiology.

Faculty

Angela Brice, DVM, PhD, DACVP, Associate Professor of Laboratory Animal Medicine
Anthony Carty, DVM, MS, DACLAM, Associate Professor of Pathobiology
Kristin Gardiner, MB, VMD, DACLAM, Assistant Professor of Pathobiology
F. Claire Hankenson, DVM, MS, DACLAM, Professor of Pathobiology
Leah Makaron, DVM, DACLAM, Assistant Professor of Pathobiology
James O. Marx, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, Associate Professor of Pathobiology
Emily Miedel, VMD, DACLAM, Associate Professor of Laboratory Animal Medicine
Blythe Philips, VMD, DACLAM, Assistant Professor of Pathobiology
Diane J. Gaertner, DVM, DACLAM, Professor of Pathobiology (Emeritus)
Abigail L. Smith, MPH, PhD, Honorary DACLAM, Professor of Pathobiology (Emeritus)

Laboratory Animal Medicine - Residents and Fellow
Alyssa Chalmin, VMD Alyssa completed her B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology at Johns Hopkins University and graduated from Penn Vet in 2023. Her interests include translational medicine, neurobehavior, and anesthesia.
Kristen Esannason, DVM Dr. Esannason graduated from Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine in 2022. She has worked with all common laboratory animal species throughout her time in veterinary school at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Cornell University, Emory University, NIH, and Cornell Weil Medical School. She is interested in nonhuman primate medicine, animal welfare, behavior and pathology.
Layne Freeman, DVM Layne completed her B.S. in Biological Sciences at Louisiana State University in 2020, her Masters in Public Health from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in 2023, and her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Louisiana State University in 2024. Her interests include animal enrichment, behavior, and welfare as well as neuroscience research.
Alessandro P. Lamacchia, VMD Dr. Lamacchia is a 2022 graduate of Penn Vet. He is interested in laboratory animal behavior, welfare, and enrichment.
Kevin M. O'Brien, VMD, MVetMed, DACVP, MRCVS RCVS Specialist in Veterinary Pathology Comparative & Laboratory Animal Pathology Fellow Kevin M. O’Brien, PhD obtained his BA in biology in 2013 from NYU. After a two year biology fellowship in Abu Dhabi, he started his veterinary degree at PennVet with the class of V’19. He then completed an anatomic pathology residency at the Royal Veterinary College in London in 2022. Since then, Dr. O’Brien joined ULAR as a fellow in comparative & laboratory animal pathology.
Sheridan O'Connor, DVM Sheridan graduated from the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in May 2023. She received her BS in Biology from Boston College in 2018. She has worked with rodent, swine, and non-human primate animal models in her past research experiences. She is looking forward to exploring new research interests and developing her clinical reasoning skills as a new veterinarian.
Samara Schreier, DVM Dr. Schreier graduated from Western University of Health Sciences in southern California in May 2024. She is currently completing her residency in Laboratory Animal Medicine at UPenn. Her interests include nonhuman primate medicine, behavior and enrichment, and internal medicine.

Contact Laboratory Animal Medicine

Director's Office
215.898.2433 (office phone)
215.573.9999 (office fax)
lindaf@upenn.edu

Address:
University of Pennsylvania
University Laboratory Animal Resources
3800 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104