Internal Medicine
Monica Aleman
Department of Medicine & Epidemiology; VMTH: Large Animal Clinic (see also: Genetics, Neurology)
Dr. Monica Aleman obtained her veterinary degree at the University UNAM-Mexico. She completed residencies in large animal internal medicine (equine emphasis) and neurology and neurosurgery at UC Davis; and achieved board certification for both specialties by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. She completed a PhD in comparative pathology of neuromuscular diseases at UC Davis. Her research and clinical interest has focused in neurology, neuromuscular and muscle disorders in all species with equine emphasis. Currently, she is a faculty member of the equine internal medicine and neurology services, and Director of the Neuromuscular Disease Laboratory at UC Davis. Dr. Aleman is one of the founding members of the Comparative Neurology Research Group, and is affiliated with the Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory at UC Davis. Dr. Aleman is author of over 90 peer reviewed medical publications, over 100 proceedings and abstracts, and over 25 book chapters; and is a regular speaker in national and international meetings. Currently, she works in the investigation of neuromuscular disorders in multiple species including humans.
For more information, please contact Dr. Aleman at mraleman@ucdavis.edu or visit her faculty profile page.
Emily Berryhill, DVM
Assistant Professor, Medicine & Epidemiology
(See also: GI Physiology/Gastroenterology)
Dr. Berryhill's research focuses on equine oncology, equine physiology and endocrinology.
STAR students working with Dr. Berryhill can expect to gain experience with determining normal ultrasonographical measurements of abdominal organs in healthy donkeys. Students will also learn physical examination skills, be trained to use ultrasound equipment, and participate in manuscript preparation.
To contact Dr. Berryhill, please send an email ehberryhill@ucdavis.edu.
Jonathan Dear, DVM, MAS, DACVIM (SAIM)
VM: Medicine & Epidemiology
(see also: Immunology/Infectious Disease)
Dr. Jonathan Dear is a board-certified small animal internal medicine specialist at the University of California, Davis. A graduate of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Dear completed his residency at UC Davis. Dr. Dear also completed a master's degree in clinical research at the UC Davis School of Medicine. Dr. Dear's clinical interests include urinary and respiratory medicine, while his research interests also include small animal infectious diseases. Dr. Dear is the current president of the International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Disease.
Possible 10-week research projects for STAR students include: Evaluation of NSAIDs for sporadic cystitis in dogs: literature review, study design and grant writing, working with patients in a clinical trial setting, introduction to statistical methods, manuscript writing and review.
Contact information: Jonathan Dear, jddear@ucdavis.edu, 530-752-7133
Andrea J. Fascetti, VMD, PhD, DACVIM (SAIM), DACVN
Veterinary Medicine Molecular Biology
My research focuses on omnivore nutrition, in particular dogs and cats. I enjoy evaluating problems on both a clinical and basic level, and many of our findings are immediately applicable to the nutritional management of dogs and cats. My current research interests are trace mineral and amino acid metabolism, obesity, carnivore nutrition, nutritional idiosyncrasies of the cat, improvement of pet foods and clinical nutrition. I am the Scientific Director of both Feline Research Laboratories and the Amino Acid Laboratory.
Through the Amino Acid Laboratory, we have analyzed thousands of whole blood and plasma samples from dogs eating grain-free diets suspected of developing dilated cardiomyopathy. Detractors of this condition claim that it is a breed related problem, and in some breeds that may be the case. That said, we saw numerous mixed breed dogs with this condition. The other observation from our laboratory was that there was a preponderance of dogs eating grain-free diets developing cystine stones. This investigator believes the sudden increase in cystine stones may be caused by the grain-free diets. Once awareness of the association of taurine deficiency and grain-free diets was on the rise, I suspected that companies were increasing the amount of methionine and cystine in their foods, resulting in higher rates of cystine loss in the urine and the development of cystine stones. We propose to review the thousands of data points we have collected and test the hypotheses regarding the relationship of grain-free diets and breed of dog, as well as the occurrence of cystine stones in dogs eating grain-free diets. Note that students will not only get experience in working with data in a retrospective format, but also will have the opportunity to work in the Amino Acid Laboratory under the direction of our lead technician.
I can be reached via email at ajfascetti@ucdavis.edu.
Meera Heller DVM, PhD, DACVIM
VM: Medicine & Epidemiology
(See also: Immunology/Infectious Disease, Food Animal Medicine & Food Safety)
Not taking students in 2025
I’m an Assistant Professor of Clinical Livestock Medicine and Surgery (C barn). My research interests lie in the area of immunology and infectious disease, specifically in the areas of innate immune response and juvenile immunity. My research goals are to improve prevention and treatment of calfhood disease, or disease in neonates of any species. My clinical expertise is in internal medicine and surgery of ruminants and swine, and I have a special interest in cattle and goats. Potential research projects include bench-top projects working with bovine bacterial pathogens in the lab, field research on a novel approach to prevention pink eye in cattle, field research to document a vector borne disease in goat populations in northern California, and clinically important retrospective studies using the VMACS database. I am also open to project ideas from students, and am happy to help you craft a research question that fits your interests.
Please contact Dr. Heller via email at mcheller@ucdavis.edu.
Sina Marsilio, Dr. med. vet., PhD, DACVIM (SAIM), DECVIM-CA
VM: Medicine and Epidemiology
(see also: Gastroenterology, Pathology/Virology)
I am a small animal internist with a special clinical and research focus in small animal gastrointestinal diseases. My current research focuses on the intestinal microbiome and its disruption during acute and chronic intestinal diseases. In addition, I am currently launching several projects on the use of fecal microbiota transplantation as a therapeutic tool for intestinal disease. I am also actively involved in translational research using stem cells in animals with gastrointestinal disease. I am looking forward to mentor students with an active interest in small animal gastrointestinal and translational research and who would like to be involved in clinical research projects.
Please email Dr. Marsilio for more information: smarsilio@ucdavis.edu
Jessica Morgan, DVM, PhD, DACVSMR
VM: Medicine & Epidemiology, VMTH Equine Field Service
(See also: Diagnostic Imaging, Cardiology)
Dr. Morgan is an equine practitioner board-certified in Equine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation in the Department of Medicine & Epidemiology with a 50% clinical appointment in the VMTH. Her laboratory focuses on the study of performance limitations in the horse with an emphasis in cardiovascular and musculoskeletal disease. Recent projects include evaluation of heart rate variability in horses with gastric ulcers and assessment of the effects of sedation on gait evaluation.
Several projects are available involving electrocardiography or echocardiography in the horse or evaluation of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone signaling in the horse. Students will gain experience with live animal studies and data analysis.
For more information and to discuss potential projects please contact Dr. Morgan at jmmorgan@ucdavis.edu.
Krystle Reagan
VM: Medicine & Epidemiology
(see also: Immunology and Infectious Diseases)
Dr. Reagan is a small animal internal medicine specialist with a focus in infectious diseases and a 50% clinical appointment in the VMTH. Her laboratory research focus includes:
- Development and validation of infectious disease diagnostics
- Integration of artificial intelligence into clinical decision making
- Translation of novel therapeutics into clinical trials
Current projects include:
- Development of CRISPR based molecular tools for detection of viral pathogens
- Use of next generation sequencing for detection of bacterial infections
- Validation of artificial intelligence/machine learning algorithms for the prediction of diagnosis and patient outcome
Please feel free to reach out at kreagan@ucdavis.edu to discuss possible STAR projects.