Annual Meeting of the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases

<p>Rationale: The Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases (CRWAD) is the premier international scientific meeting focused on animal health, disease, food safety and biosecurity. The CRWAD is a scientific meeting that is held annually from Sunday through Tuesday during the first or second week of December. Attendance is open to members, program participants, other scientists, and guests invited by the council. </p>
<p>Overall Goal or Hypothesis: The CRWAD is important to the mission of the USDA-NRI because it displays the research funded by this government organization in animal health and disease, and food-safety and it advances the acquisition of knowledge for agriculture, the environment, and human health and well-being. </p>
<p>Specific Objectives: Serve as a forum for the international exchange of information on basic and applied mechanisms of diseases based on a broad discipline base Maintain the systems biology approach for those whose primary focus is on animal pathogens, and other national and international investigators whose techniques and ideas are valuable in resolving problems in animal health and disease, and food safety. Provide a unique opportunity for graduate student and post doc participation. The CRWAD is important to the mission of the USDA-NRI because it displays the research funded by this government organization in animal disease and food-safety and it advances the acquisition of knowledge for agriculture, the environment, human health and well-being. Host the USDA-NIFA Animal Health and Well-being PD Workshop. This is a one day meeting that is held in conjunction with the annual CRWAD meeting.</p>
<p>Approach: The Goal and Objectives will be met by continuing to hold the annual CRWAD scientific meeting Sunday through Tuesday during the first or second week of December and by maintaining an open attendance policy including CRWAD members, program participants, other scientists, and guests invited by the council. The participants discuss cellular, molecular, genomic/genetic or whole-animal aspects of animal health and disease, disease prevention (vaccines, diagnostics, enhanced innate or adaptive immunity, disease resistance or susceptibility, or management), and therapeutic interventions for disease reduction and treatment in disciplines including epidemiology and animal health economics, food and environmental safety, immunology, vector borne diseases, parasitology, biosafety and biosecurity, bacterial pathogenesis, and viral pathogenesis. The research reports are primarily new, unpublished and unreported research. The attendees definitely represent international agriculture. The attendance is about 80% US and 20 % non-US, and ranges from 500 to 550 with 300-325 presentations. The annual CRWAD meeting is the only conference in North America on animal disease and food safety research that has both oral and poster presentation formats. The 2012 annual meeting is the 93rd edition, has been recognized as an important means for scientists to not only exchange scientific information but as an exchange of ideas, and to develop and form new paradigms through informal discussion. Graduate students and industry and academic professionals present and discuss the most recent advances on subjects of interest to the CRWAD and of importance to the global livestock industries. The oral and poster abstracts of new and unpublished data presented at the meeting sessions are published each year in the CRWAD Proceedings. </p>
<p>Potential Impact and expected outcomes: The CRWAD is important to the mission of the USDA-NRI because it displays the research funded by this government organization in animal disease and food-safety and it advances the acquisition of knowledge for agriculture, the environment, human health and well-being. Proceedings Improvements to US and international agriculture and food production</p>