27th Ljudevit Jurak Symposium – Lecturers

George J. Netto

Professor and Chair of Pathology The University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, Alabama 35249 USA

gnetto@UABMC.edu

George J. Netto, M.D., is Professor and the Robert and Ruth Anderson Endowed Chair of Pathology at The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

Dr. Netto received his medical degree from Damascus University before residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at Baylor University Medical Center and fellowships in surgical pathology at the Washington University School of Medicine, and in urologic pathology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2005 he joined the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine faculty and served as Director of Surgical Pathology Molecular Diagnostics and Professor of Pathology, Urology and Oncology. He currently serves as Pathologist-in-Chief and Senior Scientist at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Civitan International Research Center at UAB.

His research, focused on urologic and molecular diagnostic pathology, has helped characterize the incidence and role of TMPRSS2-ERG fusion and PTEN loss as a prognostic biomarker in prostate adenocarcinoma. Dr. Netto and collaborators are credited with the important discovery related to the high incidence of TERT gene promoter mutation in muscle invasive bladder cancer and upper tract urothelial carcinoma. The discovery led to the development of a novel, noninvasive urine-based genetic assay for early detection of bladder cancer that promises significant decrease in the need for repeated invasive and costly cystoscopy procedures.

Dr. Netto is associate editor of the Virchow Archives European Journal of Pathology, associate editor for translation and basic science for the journal Urology and the associate editor for the journals Urology Case Report and Advances in Anatomic and Molecular Pathology. He also serves on the editorial boards of the journals of Human Pathology and Pathology. He has authored or co-authored more than 350 articles and chapters, including four books in urologic pathology, and is the editor of a widely recognized textbook on genomics in pathology,Genomic Applications in Pathology, currently in its second edition.

Anna Yemelyanova

Dr. Anna Yemelyanova is a Professor of Pathology, Director of Gynecologic Pathology Section, and an Associate Director of the Genomic Diagnostics and Bioinformatics Division at the Department of Pathology of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Dr. Yemelyanova gained expertise in Gynecologic Pathology during fellowship training at the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and subsequent service as faculty at the Johns Hopkins and MD Andersen Cancer Center. Dr. Yemelyanova has also completed a fellowship in Molecular Genetic Pathology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York. Her research is primarily focused on HPV-related cancers of the gynecologic tract as well as the development of diagnostic markers of endometrial and ovarian carcinoma. Dr. Yemelyanova has authored multiple publications in the area of gynecologic pathology, several book chapters, and a book titled “Differential Diagnosis in Surgical Pathology: Gynecologic Tract.” She is a pathology collaborator for the Cervical Cancer SPORE at UAB/JHU and is involved in several collaborative projects in gynecologic oncology. Dr. Yemelyanova is an active member of the Association for Molecular Pathology where she has been serving on several committees and has participated in various educational activities.

Luka Brčić

Luka Brčić finished medical studies and training program in pathology at the University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, in Zagreb, Croatia. He worked as a consultant pathologist at the School of Medicine and University Hospital Center Zagreb in the period from 2010 till 2015, when he moved to the Medical University of Graz, Austria. He defended his PhD Thesis in 2008, at the University of Zagreb Faculty of Science, Zagreb, Croatia.

During his early training period, he made study visits to renown lung pathologists- Prof. Sanja Dacic, at University of Pittsburg Medical Center, Pittsburgh, USA (2007, 2001), and Prof. Helmut Popper at the Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria (2009). His main interest is thoracic pathology, with accent on mesotheliomas and lung carcinoma. He has published more than 70 peer-reviewed publications, and some book chapters.

He has been awarded with the Sergej Saltykow Prize in 2008 for the best doctoral thesis in the field of pathology, and received the prize for the high scientific productivity of young investigators in 2007-2011 period (University of Zagreb School of Medicine). In 2011 he received UICC International Cancer Technology Transfer Fellowship. During 30^th ECP 2018 he was awarded with the Best Poster Presenter, in the Best Poster Section Pulmonary Pathology.

He has been very active in pathology education through establishing European School of Pathology-Zagreb Edition, in 2007, which has been running ever since, and organization of Croatian pathologists’ meetings. Furthermore, he is active in professional and academic associations related to (pulmonary) pathology (ÖGPath, ESP, IASLC, PPS). He served as the Treasurer of the national association of pathologists in Croatia, and was Secretary of the Austrian Society of Pathology/IAP Division Austria (2017-2018), where he is currently the International Secretary (2019-2020). As of 2018 he is a member of the Pulmonary Pathology Socitey membership committee and the member of the International Mesothelioma Panel.

He is Editorial Board member of Scientific Reports, Diagnostic Pathology, and PLOS ONE.

Ass. Professor Sanja Pleština, MD, PhD, specialist in internal medicine, pulmology and medical oncology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Department for lung diseases Jordanovac, Croatia

School of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Croatia

Born in Zagreb, graduated at Medical school University of Zagreb 1991.  After postgraduate study at Zagreb University School of Medicine obtained MSc degree in internal medicine and PhD in the field of lung cancer. Internal medicine (1999.), pulmology (2004.) and medical oncology (2009.) residency completed at University Hospital Centre Zagreb.

Since 2011 working as head of an oncology department in Department for Pulmonary Diseases Jordanovac, University Hospital Centre Zagreb.

Coinvestigator in Ministry of science, education and sport’s scientific project The role of predictive and prognostic molecular markers in cancer treatment, subinvestigator in many clinical trials with lung cancer and pleural mesothelioma patients. From 2010. active member of Quality assurance of health care committee for establishing quality control in UHC Zagreb. Author and co-author of scientific articles, reviews and abstracts. Invited speaker on scientific and expert symposiums focused on thoracic oncology. 2017. participated in the translation of The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Clinical Practice Guidelines for non-small-cell lung cancer to the Croatian language.

Donna Shettko

Donna Shettko, DVM, MSN, FNP-C/PA-C, practices academic and clinical medicine. She is currently an associate professor at Western University of Health Sciences as a facilitator in the PBL curriculum. She is board certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (large animal). Clinically her main interest has been working with equine focusing on sports medicine yet she has continued to care for all large animals including bovine, ovine, porcine, camelids and goats. Clinical research has been with the development of simulation models concentrating on integrating the simulation models in veterinary student and resident education. She has worked both as a board certified Nurse Practitioner and board certified Physician Assistant. The combination of veterinary and human medicine has provided the opportunity to pursue her interest in Global Medicine/One World One Health. Projects in Global Medicine include participating in public health and preventative veterinary and medical training in a rural community in Honduras and implementing a preventative medicine student rotation; development and implementation of a surgical seminar using simulation models for the Mountain Gorilla veterinarians in Rwanda, Uganda and Congo; and participation in a trauma educational program for the physicians in Mozambique.

Suzana Tkalčić

Dr. Suzana Tkalčić, DVM, PhD is an Associate Professor of Veterinary Pathology at Western University of Health Sciences, California since 2003, where she is involved in teaching and collaborative research involving marine mammals and birds, with special focus on ocean health and One Health. Dr. Tkalcic is an active proponent of interprofessional collaboration, Interprofessional Education, Problem Based Learning in medical education, and a speaker/presenter at many national and international conferences in the field of medical education, One Health, ocean health, comparative and marine mammal pathology. She is also the adjunct faculty for the University of Zadar, Croatia, and School of Public Health, SDSU. She is recipient of the Dr. Ljudevit Jurak Award for Comparative Pathology by the Croatian Medical Academy, corresponding member of the Croatian Medical Academy, and the 2017. Croatian Women of Influence award recipient for Science and Technology.

Elizabeth F. Schilling

Elizabeth F. Schilling, DVM is an Assistant Professor of Equine Practice and Dentistry at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Western University of Health Sciences. A California Native, Elizabeth Schilling grew up surrounded by horses, sheep, dogs, cats, chickens and ducks. She graduated from UC Davis and worked in ambulatory equine practice prior to joining the faculty at WesternU. Her clinical field of interest include veterinary dentistry and emergency medicine. Dogs, cats and horses can all suffer from periodontal disease, as do many human patients. Translational research has given us much information about periodontal disease in dogs and people. While there are similarities, the disease is not the same across species.

Fabio Del Piero

Fabio Del Piero graduated from University of Milan Italy where he spent additional time studying in the Department of Anatomic and Avian Pathology. Following a period as a veterinary practitioner and food inspector in Italy he moved abroad in 1991. He spent two years in the British islands studying pathology and infectious diseases, in particular with the department of infectious diseases of The Animal Health Trust in Newmarket, England. In 1996 he completed a residency program in anatomic pathology in the Department of Pathology of the College of Veterinary Medicine of Cornell University ad Ithaca, New York. Then he spend 2 years as postdoctoral associate in the Cornell University New York State Diagnostic laboratory as a pathologist supervising the immunohistochemistry laboratory. In 1997 he became a Diplomate of American College of Veterinary Pathologists and was elected an honorary member of Phi-Zeta, the Veterinary Honor Society in the United States. He is a member of three chapters, Cornell University (alfa), PennVet (beta), LSU (tau). Following a brief period as a faculty in veterinary pathology in Italy, he was faculty in the Department of Pathobiology of the School of Veterinary Medicine of University of Pennsylvania from 1999 until 2011, with an affiliate appointment in the Department of Clinical Studies-New Bolton Center. His appointment included diagnostic, teaching and research activity for both University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratories (PADLS). In January 2012 he joined the faculty at Louisiana State University as full professor of pathology tenure track and chief of the molecular pathology laboratory. He obtained his PhD in the pathogenesis of zoonotic arboviruses in 2003. Research activity includes the study of the pathogenesis of infectious diseases, reproductive pathology with an emphasis on fetal and neonatal pathology, neuropathology and comparative pathology. Recent studies have been focusing on zoonotic viral and bacterial agents such as West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis virus, Zika virus, Herpesviruses, Rickettsial diseases, and Yersinia pestis and Klebsiella pneumoniae pneumonia models. He is international renowned for his expertise in equine pathology and has more than 25 years expertise in this field. He is author and coauthor of approximately 110 peer reviewed publication, 90 abstracts, 4 books, several book chapters and an atlas of equine pathology. In 2003 he received the Ljudevit Jurak Award for his studies and teaching in the field of comparative pathology. He received more than 100 invitations as a speaker at meetings and various national and international institutions. He is member of the board of directors and Vice-president Senior of the Davis-Thompson foundation for the study, practice and teaching of comparative pathology and veterinary medicine and overseas member of the British veterinary research club. He served in several ACVP committees and editorial board and he was the program chair of the 2009 ACVP meeting.

Ivan-Conrado Šoštarić-Zuckermann

Assistant professor, Ph.D., resident ECVP

Ivan-Conrado Šoštarić-Zuckermann was borne in Mexico City in 1979., finished his elementary and high school in Zagreb. In 2006 he graduated at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, in 2014 obtained his Ph.D. at the same institution. From 2007 till today he has worked at the Department of Veterinary Pathology, climbing the ranks from the junior researcher, research assistant to higher assistant. In 2016 he was elected an Associated professor at the same Department. During his professional career, he spent nine months in training in veterinary pathology at Institute of veterinary pathology, Vetsuise Veterinary Faculty, University of Zürich (Switzerland). He also attended numerous scientific meetings, summer schools and workshops regarding veterinary pathology. Currently, he is a third-year resident of a European College of Veterinary Pathologists in the ECVP training center in Zagreb. Most of his research is the field of small animal oncology.

Tracey S. McNamara

Tracey S. McNamara, D.V.M., Diplomate, A.C.V.P., is a veterinary pathologist and a Professor of Pathology at Western University of Health Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine in Pomona, CA.
Dr. McNamara specializes in the recognition and understanding of the diseases of captive and free-ranging wildlife and is best known for her work on West Nile virus. Her role in the discovery of the West Nile virus is described in the September 2000 GAO report “West Nile Virus – Lessons for Public Health Emergency Preparedness”. She is credited as having “served a central role as a unifying force, molding and sometimes forcing interrelationships between local and federal government agencies and private enterprises, enabling progress toward the common goal of monitoring a newly emerging disease in the United States.” The Scientist (March 4, 2002)
Dr McNamara served as a consultant to the National Biosurveillance Advisory Subcommittee and continues to be actively involved in the development of the Nation’s biosurveillance strategy. She served as lead on a project with Russian colleagues on the “Human-Animal Interface” by the Nuclear Threat Initiative’s Global Health and Biosecurity program in Washington, DC. She recently gave a TEDxUCLA talk entitled “Canaries in the Coalmine” about continued gaps in biosurveillance for for emerging biological threats. She recently chaired a panel on “Disease X” at the World Health Summit, Berlin, 2018 and is actively involved in the One Health movement and advocates for a species neutral approach to the detection of pandemic threats.

Ante Cvitković

1. Personal information
Assistant professor Ante Cvitković, PhD ,MD CROSBI: https://www.bib.irb.hr/pretraga?operators=and|Cvitkovi%C4%87,%20Ante%20(334953)|text|author
Age: 48 / Gender: Male / Nationality: Croatian / email:ante.cvitkovic@sb.t-com.hr
2. Education
2012 PhD , University of Zagreb, Faculty of Medicine, Zagreb (Croatia)
2000-2003, specialist in epidemiology
1989-1995, medical doctor, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Medicine, Zagreb (Croatia)
3. Employment
2000 – present, Institute of Public Health Brod-Posavina County (MD, specialist in epidemiology, director)
1998-2000, MD, Healt Center in Dvor (ambulance primary care)
4. Institutional responsibilities
2007 – present, director
2007 – 2017, Head of the Department of Health Ecology
2017-present, Head of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health
5. Approved projects
1. Study on the Impact of Ecological Factors on Human Health (2016-2020, head)
2. Endemic nephropathy in Croatia, epidemiology, diagnosis and etiopathogenesis ( 2007-2011, collaborator)
3. Predictive models in healthcare (collaborator)
6. Teaching activity
2018-present, assistant professor, Josip Juraj Strossmayer Univeristy of Osijek, Faculty of Dental Medicine and Health, Osijek (Croatia)
2014-present, assistant professor, Josip Juraj Strossmayer Univeristy of Osijek, Faculty of Medicine, Osijek (Croatia)
2012 – 2014, senior assistant ,Josip Juraj Strossmayer Univeristy of Osijek, Faculty of Medicine, Osijek (Croatia)
7. Reviewing
Reviewer for 4 scientific journals.
8. Membership in Societies
Croatian Epidemiological Society, Croatian Society for Health Ecology, Croatian Catholic Medical Society
9. Organisation of conferences
Organization Committee Member of III, IV, V, VI, VII and VIII “Dana Andrija Štampara” ( every two years) in Slavonski Brod,
2011 – Organization Committee Member ,of NATO ASI Conference
2014,- Organization Committee Member of One Health Symposium
2015 – Organization Committee Member of. Symposium on palliative care with international participation
2017- Organization Committee Member of 2nd International Congress on Palliative Care
2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018-Leader of the Symposium on Alcoholism, Gambling and Modern Addiction
10. Outreach activities
guest on numerous radio, television and newspapers as a health care expert
Publication summary (2011-2019): 31 papers published in journals (12 indexed in Current Contents), 6 Book Chapters, 9 Conference Proceedings, and more than 88 Abstracts.
Citation: 50 cites, h-index: 5

John H Tegzes

John H Tegzes, MA, VMD, Diplomate ABVT Director of IPE; Professor of Veterinary Toxicology
is a Nurse (human medicine) and a Veterinarian with specialty board certification in Toxicology. As an academician, educationalist, and researcher he focuses on how toxins/toxicants affect humans, animals, and the environment, with particular interest in acute and chronic exposures and the clinical effects they cause. His research interests include food and feed-borne toxins, their clinical effects, and prevention strategies. His current research focus is to investigate snake venom effects, and clinical treatments for venomous bites in both humans and animals. Educationally, he has expertise in small team teaching and learning, using problem-based learning and team-based learning. He serves as the Director of Interprofessional Practice and Education for nine health professions at the University, and is passionate about team-based health care.

Education:
Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, USA BSN (Nursing) 06/1985
University of Santa Monica, Santa Monica, CA, USA MA (Applied Psychology) 09/1989
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA VMD (Veterinary Medicine) 05/1995
University of California, Davis, CA, USA Residency in Veterinary Toxicology 08/2003

B. Positions and Honors
Director of Interprofessional Practice and Education for Western University of Health Sciences (university-wide)
Professor of Toxicology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Western University of Health Sciences

C. Contributions to Science
Understanding of the prevalence and clinical impacts of mycotoxins in food and feed Development of a novel antivenom against snakebite

Pedro P. Diniz

Pedro P. Diniz is an Associate Professor in Small Animal Internal Medicine with tenure at the Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU) College of Veterinary Medicine, with over 15 years of experience in vector-borne diseases. He obtained his DVM, Clinical Sciences Residency, and Ph.D. from the São Paulo State University in Brazil. For 5 years, Dr. Diniz was a postdoc/research associate at the Intracellular Pathogens Research Laboratory at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, mentored by Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt (DVM, DACVIM). Dr. Diniz has published over 60 manuscripts (http://goo.gl/vkvg7J), being cited over 2250 times, and has given over 50 presentations in the U.S. and abroad. He has authored several book chapters in respected textbooks such as Ettinger’s Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Kirk’s Current Veterinary Therapy, and Greene’s Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat. Dr. Diniz has mentored 17 students, leading to 30 presentations and 23 student co-authorship. Since July of 2018, he has served as the Interim Director of Outcomes Assessment. Dr. Diniz has been nominated for the Pfizer Animal Health Distinguished Veterinary Teacher Award and was Awarded the Zoetis Award for Veterinary Research Excellence and the Innovation Champion Award at Western University of Health Sciences. diniz@westernu.edu

Diane McClure

Diane McClure, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, dmcclure@westernu.edu, Associate Professor, Western University of Health Sciences
Dr. McClure received a BA in Zoology from UC Santa Barbara. Following a PhD (Physiology), DVM (Zoological Medicine) and Residency in Laboratory Animal Medicine at UC Davis, Dr. McClure has pursued Institutional practice in academic, zoo and shelter settings. During 6 years at The Ohio State University, Dr. McClure taught lab animal and exotic animal medicine and started the OSU Pet Loss Support Hotline. She oversaw the construction of several animal housing facilities, in addition to directing ~50,000 square feet of animal facilities. Dr. McClure became a Diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine in 1995. In 1998, she became Campus Vet/Director, Animal Resource Center for UC Santa Barbara. In 2009, Dr. McClure joined Western University of Health Sciences as Associate Professor of Veterinary Medicine where she has served as a physiology content expert, clinical educator in clinical skills including the VACS (mobile surgical vehicle), 3rd year Course Leader for Laboratory Animal Medicine and Research, and 4th year Rotation advisor. Dr. McClure is a leader in organized veterinary medicine. She is Past Chair of the CVMA House of Delegates and Past-President of ASLAP. Currently, Dr. McClure served several roles in California in disaster preparedness including Co-Chair of the CVMA Disaster Committee and So. California Coordinator for the California Veterinary Medical Reserve Corp (CAVMRC).