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Scientific Advisory Board

An experienced team with a wide range of expertise in veterinary medicine. The members of our SAB bring deep animal health expertise that plays an important role in identifying strategic directions and shaping our portfolio of research programs.

THOMAS M DONNELLY, DVM, MS, DACLAM, DABVP, DECZM

Dr. Donnelly is Head of Exotic Services at Tai Wai Small Animal and Exotic Hospital, a 24-hour hospital with 14 veterinarians in Hong Kong. He received his veterinary degree and Master of Science in pathology from The University of Sydney, Australia, and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in comparative medicine and pathology at The Rockefeller University in New York. As a board-certified specialist in laboratory animal medicine, he provides research advice, medical attention and welfare supervision to researchers at biotechnology start-ups and small institutions who use animals in scientific investigation and testing. He is also a board-certified specialist in exotic mammals and sees primary care and referred patients. He is a recipient of the 2018 Oxbow/AEMV Exotic Mammal Health Award. His work links the understanding of animal diseases and their complexities with developing novel therapies for humans and animals.

MICHAEL DUTTON, DVM, MS, DABVP (CF, Av, ECM, RA), CVPP, CertAqV. FFCAPMP

Dr. Dutton owns and operates two AAHA veterinary hospitals in New Hampshire. The Exotic and Bird Clinic of New England is a specialty center within these hospitals with a caseload of approximately six thousand exotic pets per year. The clinic is staffed by three veterinarians and exotic experienced CVTs. The clinic also oversees residencies for those veterinarians seeking specialization in exotic pet medicine. Dr. Dutton is a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in four specialties: Canine & Feline Practice, Avian Practice, Exotic Companion Mammal Practice, and Reptile & Amphibian Practice. He has lectured and written on exotic pet veterinary topics and pain management both locally and nationally. He has a master’s degree in Pain Management, is a certified Veterinary Pain Practitioner by IVAPM, and a certified Aquatic Veterinarian by WAVMA. He is also a Founding Fellow of ABVP Companion Animal Pain Management Practice. Although he lives in New Hampshire with his wife and pets, he and his wife grew up in Auburn, Maine.

MARK EPSTEIN, DVM, DVM, DABVP (C/F), CVPP

Dr. Epstein received his DVM from University of Georgia and is the Senior Partner and Medical Director of TotalBond Veterinary Hospitals, a small group of AAHA-accredited practices in the Charlotte & Gastonia NC. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (Canine/Feline) and is a past-president of ABVP. He is certified by the Academy of Integrative Pain Management (AIPM), is recognized as a Certified Veterinary Pain Practitioner (CVPP) by the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management and is a past-president of IVAPM; he is currently President of the IVAPM Research & Scholarship Foundation. Dr. Epstein chaired the AAHA Senior Care Guidelines Task Force and co-Chaired the 2015 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines Task Force. He is a recipient of the 2022 Viticus Small Animal Educator of the Year Award.

James Fox, DVM, DACLAM

Dr. Fox, who received his Master of Science from Stanford University and his DVM from Colorado State University, has had a long career researching, studying, and educating in the field of laboratory animal science. He has a longstanding interest in the gastrointestinal microbiome and how it interfaces and influences the host’s immune response to gastrointestinal pathogens, particularly Helicobacterspecies, and he has been studying the pathogenesis of Helicobacter gastrointestinal diseases in humans and animals for the past 35 years. Dr. Fox and his team’s research has been enhanced and strengthened by an established collaboration with Professors Tannenbaum and Dedon, with whom they have studied the immunopathology of IBD and CRC. Dr. Fox is currently Director, Division of Comparative Medicine, and Professor, Department of Biological Engineering, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Marina M. Hanson, DVM, PHD, DACLAM

Dr. Hanson received her BS from Rutgers University-Cook College with an interest in laboratory animal science and research. She then attended veterinary school at Iowa State University, followed by a laboratory animal residency and PhD program at University of Missouri. Her PhD work focused on generation of novel transgenic rat and zebrafish models. She gained further expertise in rodent colony management, breeding and genetics while employed at Taconic Biosciences. She became an ACLAM diplomate in 2020. Dr. Hanson is currently the site veterinarian for the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.

Hilton Klein, VMD, DACLAM, DECLAM

Dr. Klein received a BS in Animal Science/Microbiology from Rutgers University, MS from Pennsylvania State University, and VMD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. He previously worked in senior and executive management and research at Merck Research Laboratory, Taconic, Harlan Laboratories (Envigo), and Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pa. He is a Diplomate of both the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) and the European College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ECLAM) and served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Klein is widely published in peer-reviewed literature, making him a highly respected academic and industry thought leader. He has published over 70 articles and multiple book chapters in the field of laboratory animal medicine.

Christine Lieggi, DVM, DACLAM

Dr. Lieggi is the Associate Director and Head of Veterinary Services in the Research Animal Resource Center, which serves Weill Cornell Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. She received her veterinary degree from Michigan State University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in laboratory animal medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has been a diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine since 2005. Dr. Lieggi is experienced with a wide range of animal species utilized in the biomedical research setting, including rodents, fish, primates, canines, and farm animals. She enjoys teaching, and her special interests include the management of pain and distress in the research setting.

Jörg Mayer, DVM, MS, DVM, DABVP (Exotic Companion Mammal Practice), DECZM, DACZM

Dr. Joerg Mayer went to the Royal veterinary College in London / England to study for his Master of Science degree in wild animal health. The masters project which focused on lead toxicity in the common loon, brought him to the Tufts Wildlife Clinic in the USA. There he was then hired to serve as a clinical associate professor and as the head of the clinical service for exotic animals. After 10 years at Tufts University he moved to Athens, Georgia in 2010. He currently is a Full Professor in Zoological Medicine at UGA. Dr. Mayer qualified with the first batch of specialists in Exotic Companion Mammals as a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners, in addition he is also a Diplomate of the American and the European College of Zoological Medicine. He served as the president of the Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians from 2010-2012. Since 2012 he has also been an International Fulbright Specialist in Zoological Medicine. In 2013 and in 2024 he received the exotic speaker of the year award by the NAVC. In 2018 he was voted Continuing Educator of the Year in Exotics at the Western Veterinary Conference. In 2016 he received the Oxbow/AEMV Exotic Mammal Health Award, an annual award to recognize excellence and innovation in the field of exotic mammal health.

Michael Petty, DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVPP

Dr. Petty graduated from Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1980. He practiced at several animal hospitals before establishing his own practice, Arbor Pointe Veterinary Hospital, which he has owned and operated since 1985, and sold in early 2024. He is certified in medical acupuncture (CVA), canine rehabilitation (CCRT), and is a Certified Veterinary Pain Practitioner (IVAPM). During his time as the owner/veterinarian at Arbor Pointe Veterinary Hospital, he established an internal referral center, Animal Pain Center, wherein he used his expertise for his patients, but also for veterinary students, veterinarians, and to assist pharmaceutical companies as an advisor and to help with the development of pain drugs. He is the author of Dr. Petty’s Pain Relief in Dogs: A complete Medical and Integrative Guide and has authored a number of peer-reviewed publications including 2015 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats, and Companion Animal Owner Perceptions, Knowledge, and Beliefs Regarding Pain Management in End-of-Life Care. Dr. Petty is currently a member of the World Small Animal Association Global Pain Council. He is the past president of the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management.

William White, VMD, DACLAM, DECLAM

Dr. White received his VMD from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia (1970); his MS in laboratory animal medicine from The Pennsylvania State University in Hershey (1972); and his BS from Pennsylvania State University in University Park (1966). He was a tenured Associate Professor of Comparative Medicine of the College of Medicine at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center conducted basic research in a number of areas involving the effects of environmental variables on laboratory animals and laboratory animal anesthesia, taught surgery, and served as anesthesiologist for the artificial internal organs research program. In 1988, he joined Charles River Laboratories as Director of Professional Services, subsequently holding a number of positions in the organization. He is recently retired from his last position as Corporate Vice President for Veterinary and Professional Services. He is a Diplomate of both the American (ACLAM) and European (ECLAM) Colleges of Laboratory Animal Medicine and served as president of ACLAM and the International Association of Colleges of Laboratory Animal Medicine (IACLAM).

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