# Animal and Animal Food Diagnostic Sample Analysis in Support of FDA Vet-LIRN Activities and Investigations

> **NIH FDA U18** · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · 2022 · $48,750

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System (PADLS) at the University of Pennsylvania’s New
Bolton Center offers comprehensive veterinary diagnostic services in the areas of pathology,
microbiology, molecular diagnostics, and toxicology, as fully accredited by the American Association of
Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD) and a first-tier laboratory member of the Veterinary
Laboratory Investigation and Response Network (Vet-LIRN). Safeguarding the animals and citizens of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania against threats to animal health and food safety, the laboratory serves
as a critical Eastern United States resource, making it an excellent fit for this Vet-LIRN project proposal.
Our laboratory is experienced in the analysis of a variety of sample and matrix types, including but not
limited to animal samples, environmental samples, vermin, water, animal drug products, and animal and
human food products and ingredients such as grain, meat, fish, and milk. We will use our laboratory’s
veterinary diagnostic experience, expertise, and infrastructure to accomplish the work described for this
project. In addition to addressing the need for added laboratory capacity in the event of a large-scale
outbreak or incident involving animal food, drug-related illnesses, or other large-scale emergency events
requiring surge capacity testing, the PADLS New Bolton Center Laboratory can further strengthen the
Vet-LIRN through diagnostic activities that better enable early detection of emerging events involving
national food safety and security and facilitate the rapid responses that can minimize harm and best
protect both human and animal health.
Our laboratory provides comprehensive veterinary diagnostic services to the Pennsylvania and the
surrounding region through federal, state, and local collaborations. Some analyses are part of normal
surveillance activities or routine necropsies, while others are associated with cases of excessive,
unexpected, or otherwise unexplainable animal losses or illness that may potentially pose a risk to
animal health and/or animal or human food safety. The laboratory adheres to AAVLD’s “Requirements
for an Accredited Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory”, meeting specific requirements pertaining
to all aspects of the laboratory and its activities. AAVLD also requires that our laboratory has a Quality
System that documents policies, systems, programs, and procedures. Due to the varied nature of the
sample matrices we receive we are constantly improving and refining our analytical methods in order to
ensure their sensitivity and specificity. We are confident in our ability to continue to support Vet-LIRN in
this project due to our present qualifications and experience and a proven history of successful Vet-LIRN
collaborations through both the infrastructure and method development grant programs.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10569223
- **Project number:** 2U18FD006158-06
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Lisa Murphy
- **Activity code:** U18 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** FDA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $48,750
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2017-08-01 → 2027-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10569223

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10569223, Animal and Animal Food Diagnostic Sample Analysis in Support of FDA Vet-LIRN Activities and Investigations (2U18FD006158-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10569223. Licensed CC0.

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