Volume 19, Number 3, November 2000
From The President
As we close out the year 2000, the AAVPT stands on the verge of several changes. First, we look forward with excitement to the Biennial Symposium in which we will be meeting in conjunction with the ACVIM Annual Forum in Denver in May in 2001. This will be the first of the AAVPT Biennial Symposia to be allied with a larger meeting. The combination of the veterinary pharmacology specific sessions and the broader sessions in veterinary medicine should provide not only excellent continuing education opportunities for each of us, but a terrific opportunity to network with fellow veterinary pharmacologists and progressive veterinary clinicians. I urge you to mark you calendars now, and review our Program Chairman's section in this newsletter.
Second, continue to visit our website (www.aavpt.org), and you will soon see a new look and new utilities. We will be implementing a "members only" section where you can update your directory information, read advertisements for pertinent job opportunities, discuss specific issues, and possibly even vote on key issues for the Academy. If you have specific utilities and/or functions or connections you wish to see, please contact either myself (scott.a.brown@am.pnu.com) or Debbie Kochevar (dkochevar@cvm.tamu.edu).
Thanks to Debbie Kochevar for the 2000 AAVPT Membership Directory that each of you should have received by now. Undoubtedly there will be some errors that will be found in the Directory. Please contact Debbie should you note any changes that need to be made.
The Nominating Committee will be convening over the next few weeks to prepare a slate of candidates for the 2001 officer elections. Be prepared should the nominating committee contact you. I urge you to consider not only what the Academy provides to you, but how you can serve the profession and the discipline of veterinary pharmacology and therapeutics by considering serving in an elected capacity in the Academy if asked. If you have been or are approached by the nominating committee, and need more information about the expectations for a particular elected office, please feel free to contact one of us to discuss it.
Finally, be prepared to consider some constitutional changes that are being proposed from the AAVPT Council. There will be several changes proposed. Some of them have minor effects on business (e.g., combining the constitution and bylaws). Others are intended to allow electronic communication rather than requiring use of the U.S. Postal Service for newsletters and notices of dues delinquency. Still others are intended to vest the decisions regarding dues with the AAVPT Council, the elected officers who are expected to conduct the business of the Academy. When these changes are sent to you, the specific changes will be outlined as well as a justification for those changes. I urge you to consider favorably these recommended constitutional changes.
As the year draws to a close, I ask that you reflect on your life priorities. Consider your family, your work, and your faith. Within each, consider your motivations. If you can look at yourself in the mirror, and honestly say you have the three areas of your life in proper balance and motivated by the right factors, then you are by definition successful, and happiness and contentment will be the hallmarks of your life. For each of you, I pray for that success, happiness, and contentment
- Scott A. Brown.
* * * * *
Secretary-Treasurer's Report
Greetings from College Station. The weather here has finally dipped below 100 degrees and we are looking forward to at least a week or two of fall or winter weather.
I hope you have all received the current 2000 AAVPT Directory. Thanks to those who contributed to the accuracy of the directory by providing current address information. I am eager to address any possible directory errors and urge you to examine your entry carefully. Please contact me (dkochevar@cvm.tamu.edu) with any changes that may be necessary. We have already found a few mistakes that I would like to correct: Jane Owens Clark should be listed as a full Fellow rather than a Student Member; Bernie Fisher holds both the DVM and PhD degrees; Robert W. Doughtery and Thomas E. Powers should have been listed as both Distinguished Fellow and Emeritus Fellow; Carl E. Aronson's correct FAX number is 610-544-4262; and Virgina Fajt and Stehen Bai should have been listed but were not. My apologies to all those affected by our mistakes. Again, please contact me with any and all errors. We have worked hard to improve the databae and would like to continue to make it better.
We are still missing correct contact information for the following members: Peter Bentley, Raymond Cerniga, Stephen Bai, Gail Elizabeth Dawe, Theo de Roij, Roderick Dougherty, Ramesh Garg, David Miller, Joseph Roder, and Vincent Scialli. Please notify me if you know how to contact any of these members.
Our bank account stands at $13, 964 as of Septermber 29, 2000. We anticipate a payment to Blackwell Science later in the year.
Dues notices, journal renewals, and consideration of new members for election to the Academy will occur in November. Please note that prompt renewal of your Journal of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics subscriptions will assure that no issues are missed in 2001.
Like Scott, I look forward to the biennial symposium in Denver in 2001. We are in the early stages of web site reconfiguration, and will try to provide timely updates as plans for the symposium proceed. Any suggestions for improvement of the web site are welcomed. Our goal is to have most substantial changes complete by the beginning of the new year.
Please contact me if I may be of assistance to you. Again, thanks for keeping me posted on changes of address and phone. Most importantly, we are very eager to move to electronic communications, so we must have your current E-mail address. Have a great holiday season.
- Debbie Kochevar
* * * * *
Request For Nominations For Five AAVPT AWARDS (Deadline January 31, 2001)
1. The Awards Committee seeks nominations for the Lloyd E. Davis Award. This prestigious honor is presented for outstanding contributions over an entire career to the advancement and extension of knowledge in the fields of veterinary or comparative pharmacology. There are no restrictions regarding age, gender, institutional affiliations, race or nationality of the candidate, and membership in the AAVPT is not required. Nominations must be made and seconded by at least two members of AAVPT and should consist of letters describing the major research publications, educational accomplishments, and other scholarly contributions which make the candidate eligible for the award. The dossier must include a complete curriculum vita. To ensure consideration, six copies of all information must be submitted to the Chair of the Awards Committee no later than January 31, 2001. Presentation of the award will be made at the AAVPT Symposium in May 2001, at which time the recipient will be invited to deliver the Lloyd E. Davis Lecture. The award will consist of a commemorative medallion/plaque, roundtrip transportation, meeting registration, hotel room, and a check for $750.
3. The Awards Committee seeks nominations for the AAVPT Graduate Student Award. The AAVPT Graduate Student Award is
intended to provide a graduate student studying in the area of veterinary pharmacology/therapeutics with financial support to attend the
AAVPT Symposium. The award will consist of a commemorative plaque, meeting registration, and a check for $500 to be presented
at the AAVPT Symposium in May 2001. Any graduate student in good standing duly enrolled in a Masters or Doctoral program will
be eligible. The student is not required to have earned a degree in veterinary medicine prior to entering a graduate program. Only
those students enrolled in a U.S. University will be considered. The student must be pursuing graduate studies in veterinary
pharmacology and must be sponsored by an AAVPT Fellow. Applications must be submitted in full to the Chair of the Awards
Committee by January 31, 2001. A completed application should include the following:
Name
Institution
Degree sought and expected date of graduation
Title of presentation (if applicable)
Academic record
Two letters of recommendation (one of which must be from an AAVPT Fellow)
The applicant's resume
Brief statement by the applicant of his or her career goals
4. All nominations and applications should be submitted in full no later than January 31, 2001 to:
Dr. Gary Koritz, Chair, AAVPT Awards Committee
2001 South Lincoln Avenue
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Illinois
Urbana, Illinois 61802
Phone: 217-333-2506
Fax: 217-244-1652
E-mail: gkoritz@cvm.uiuc.edu
* * * * *
News From the Pharmaceutical Industry
The Animal Health Institute (trade association of animal pharmaceutical companies) for the fourth year in a
row hosted a very successful Pet Night on Capitol Hill. This event is an annual celebration that highlights
the bond between people and their pets and the contributions that pharmaceutical products have made in
the animal health and veterinary medicine. This event has become one of the most well attended events on
Capital Hill with more than 600 attendees, including dozens of Members of Congress.
From 1990 to 1999 sales of companion animal health products have more than doubled from $528 million dollars to more than $1.3 million dollars, an increase of 155%. In addition to revolutionary products to treat fleas, ticks, and heartworm, medications to treat cardiovascular disease, separation anxiety, cognitive disorders have emerged in recent years.
- David F. Kowalczyk
* * * * *
An Update Regarding The American College of Veterinary Clinical Pharmacology (ACVCP)
The ACVCP once again will present a scientific program at the 2001 AnnualACVIM Veterinary Medical Forum. The college has been a consistent and popular feature of the ACVIM Forum for the last several years, and this has given us the opportunity to showcase our specialty. This year's program was developed by the Program Committee Chair, Dr. Cyril Clarke in cooperation with the AAVPT Program Chair, Dr. Cory Langston. The program can be viewed at the web site: http:// www.acvim.org. We are anxious to participatein the upcoming AAVPT Symposium in Denver coinciding with the AnnualMedical Forum in Denver. The Chairs of our two primary committees involved with credentialing candidates will have their committee members busy this year. Dr. Jeff Wilcke chairs the Credentials Committee of six Diplomates who will be reviewing applications for this year's examination. Dr. Wilcke's committee also has the charge of reviewing training programs. Anyone with a candidate who plans to take the board certification examination in the next three years should contact Dr. Wilcke to see about having their program reviewed.
Dr. Duncan Ferguson takes over from Dr. Ted Whittem as the new chair of the examination committee. Duncan's committee of nine Diplomates will beworking on the development of the 2001 certification examination. We had five candidates successfully pass the Phase I ACVCP Examination in 2000, and upon meeting their credentialing requirements, they will be eligible for the Phase II Examination in 2001. Please visit the ACVCP web site at: http:// www.acvcp.com.
- Mark Papich
* * * * *
News From The United States Pharmacopeia (USP)
In its reorganization for the 2000-2005 revision cycle, the USP created a new veterinary division with two committees. The Veterinary Drug Information Expert Committee is chaired by Dr. Cory Langston and will continue its work of developing veterinary drug monographs. Some of the existing veterinary drug monographs can be viewed at the USP web site: http://www.usp.org. This committee held its first orientation meeting for the2000-2005 cycle in September. A Veterinary Drug Expert Committee has been added as a new USP standards committee. The chair of this Expert Panel is Mark Papich. We are excited that USP has allocated staff to develop drug standard monographs, and the committee is looking forward to examining drug standards issues unique to veterinary drugs, which include standards listed in the general chapters of the USP-NF. The panel will hold its first orientation meeting in late October.
Mark Papich
* * * * *
USP forms Expert Committee on Veterinary Medicine (Information) for 2000-2005 Cycle
The USP (U.S. Pharmacopeia) has formed its Expert Committee responsible for the ongoing revision and development of information about drugs used in the veterinary community. Cory Langston, DVM, Ph.D., Diplomate ACVCP and Mark Papich, DVM, MS, Diplomate ACVCP are elected members of USP's Council of Experts (COE). They chair the Veterinary Medicine Information Expert Committee and the Veterinary Medicine Standards Expert Commitee, respectively. The COE is a body of distinguished scientists elected in April to chair 62 Expert Committees for the 2000-2005 cycle. Committee members are nationally- and internationally-recognized scientists, academicians, clinicians, and consumer advocates appointed by the elected chairpersons.
For the information committee, antibiotic monographs created by the former cycle committee members can be seen at www.usp.org. Within the next year the committee hopes to publish all of their veterinary drug monographs as a supplement to JVPT. The new committee roster, many of whom are AAVPT members, includes:
Veterinary Medicine Committee (Information)
Cory Langston, DVM, Ph.D., Diplomate ACVCP (Chair), Associate Professor, Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Mississippi State, MS
Michael D. Apley, DVM, Ph.D., BS, Assistant Professor, Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA
Dawn M. Boothe, BS, MS, DVM, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Veterinary Teaching Hospital, College Station, TXTerrence P. Clark, DVM, Ph.D., DACVCP, Senior Clinical Research Investigator, Pfizer Global Research and Development, Groton, CT
Gigi F. Davidson, BS, RPh, DICVP, Director of Pharmacy Services, North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, NC
Patricia Dowling, DVM, MS, DACVIM, DACVCP, Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
Douglas T. Kemp, Pharm.D., DICVP, Clinical Pharmacy Associate in Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy Practice, and Director of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Georgia, College of Veterinary Medicine, Athens, GA
Mark G. Papich, DVM, MS, BS, Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacology, North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, NC
M. Gatz Riddell, DVM, MS, Associate Professor, Auburn University, Auburn, AL
Jim E. Riviere, DVM, Ph..D., MS, BS, Burroughs Welcome Fund Distinguished Professor, Director, North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine Center for Cutaneous Pharmacology & Residue Toxicology, Raleigh, NC
Roderick C. Tubbs, DVM, Ph.D., Bowling Green, KY
Jeff R. Wilcke, DVM, MS, Professor, Veterinary Informatics and Clinical Pharmacology, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Blacksburg, VA
- Cory Langston
* * * * *
News From Washington
CVM Moves to New Location
The Office of the Director, CVM, has moved to a new location and although itis only across the street, they do have a new address and telephone number. The new address is:
Metro Park North 4
7519 Standish Place
Rockville, MD 20855
Phone: 301/827-2950
Fax: 301/827-4401
International Cooperation on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Registration of Veterinary Medicinal Products (VICH)
Officially launched in 1996 VICH is a trilateral (EU-Japan-US) program aimed at harmonizing technical requirements for veterinary product registration. Australia and New Zealand participate as active observers. The scope of the VICH program includes both pharmaceutical and biological veterinary medicines.
The globalization of the human and veterinary pharmaceutical industries and the increased international trade in animal-derived food have emphasized the need for international harmonization of requirements for productregistration. Although early initiatives in harmonization of animal drugs included the formation in 1985, by Codex Alimentarius, of a Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods, the first International Conference on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticalsfor Human Use (ICH) in 1991 provided the real impetus for the establishment of VICH.
In 1994, the Organization of International Epizooties (OIE) set up an ad hoc group to discuss the harmonization of veterinary medicinal products. Under the auspices of OIE, the Steering Committee of the VICH held its firstmeeting in 1996, at which the membership and the working procedures wereagreed upon and a work program established. The OIE, through its Collaborating Center for Veterinary Medicinal Products, has recently been made an associate member of the VICH Steering Committee, and the WorldFederation of the Animal Health Industry (COMISA) serves as the Secretariat of VICH.
For additional information on VICH contact: Dr. Robert Livingston, VICH Coordinator, Metro Park North 2, 7500 Standish Place, Rockville, MD 20855. Telephone: 30/594-5903; Fax: 301/594-1831. Website: http://vich.eudra.org.
-Richard H. Teske
* * * * *
Program Committee Report
AAVPT Symposium
After skipping a year in deference to the EAVPT meeting in Jerusalem this summer, the AAVPT biennial symposia will resume in May of 2001. Upon receiving input from the AAVPT membership via a survey, the Executive Committee opted to hold the symposium in conjunction with the ACVIM meeting in Denver. Accordingly, the joint sessions will be divided into basic science and clinical programs.
The two societies are attempting to coordinate registration fees such that a participant may opt to attend either one or both sessions. The AAVPT social, business, and basic science program sessions will occur just prior to the ACVIM Forum, with the clinically oriented program occurring in conjunction with ACVIM. Graduate students research abstract posters or presentations will be included as part of the ACVIM abstract competition. (Information on how to submit an abstract can be found at the ACVIM web site at:
http://www.acvim.org/wwwfp/abstracts/2001abstracts/abstracthm.htm.)
Basic Science Program
The Program Committee has proposed that this portion of the meeting be devoted to a discussion of the issues challenging the discipline of veterinary pharmacology. The proposed format will include presentations explaining a particular problem, followed by a 15-minute discussion period. After all topics have been presented, there will be breakout sessions for each topic to enable participants to explore how the AAVPT might best address the respective issues. These discussions and breakout sessions will culminate in subcommittee reports.
The Program Committee is seeking input from its AAVPT members regarding those topics considered to be most important for discussion at the upcoming meeting. Examples of suggested discussion items include:
(1) Cross-species extrapolations (as it pertains both to bioequivalence and pharmacokinetic concerns).
(2) Establishing a correlation between in vitro dissolution data and in vivo product bioequivalence.
-(2) Setting product comparability standards based upon the correlation of kinetic and dynamic relationships.
This symposium can only meet Our needs if You let your voice be heard. Please indicate which of the above issues you consider to be of greatest interest and importance. Alternatively, you can provide us with other topics you might like to see discussed. You can contact either myself (Dr. Cory Langston [langston@cvm.msstate.edu], or the other members of the Program committee including, Dr. Marilyn Martinez [mmartin1@cvm.fda.gov], Cyril Clarke [clarke@okstate.edu], Jane Owens Clark [jane_o_clark@groton.pfizer.com], and Pete Miller [petem@equiaid.com].
Clinical Program
Topics on Antimicrobial Therapy
(Moderator - Dr. Dawn Boothe, Texas A&M University):
Therapy of Special Patient Groups
(Moderator - Dr. Cyril Clarke, Oklahoma State University):
Discontinuation of the AAVPT portion of the
AVMA Convention Program
The AAVPT and ACVCP are committed to meeting speaker expenses for scientific sessions that we sponsor. Historically, these have included yearly presentations at the ACVIM Forum and the AVMA Convention. Unfortunately this finanical commitment to speaker reimbursement has been increasingly difficult to meet. Given our close ties to ACVIM and their recent decision to provide us with travel funds at $500 per speaker (or a maximum of $1000 per speaker session) we anticipate that this joint meeting will continue. Sponsoring the additional program at the AVMA does, however, pose difficulties. Although AVMA provides some monies to address speaker expenses, these typically fall far short of actual expenditures. This shortfall is compounded by an AVMA policy that prohibits affiliated groups from seeking sponsorship for their specific program. An appeal to the AVMA to alter this policy was rejected. Accordingly, the Executive Council is strongly considering discontinuation of the AVMA Convention program.- Cory Langston (AAVPT), langston@cvm.msstate.edu
- Cyril Clarke (ACVCP), clarke@okway.okstate.edu
* * * * *
A.A.V.P.T. Newsletter Staff
Correspondents
Industry: David F. Kowalczyk
Washington: Richard H. Teske
J.V.P.T.: Jim Riviere
Education: Gordon L. Coppoc
The Newsletter is published three times a year by the American Academy of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. Please address all correspondence to: Dr. Carl E. Aronson, 246 Lynbrooke Road, Springfield, PA 19064-3121 [Telephone: (610) 544-4262 or (610) 896-1357 (Office at Haverford College), (Fax: (610) 544-4262, E-Mail: <aronsonc@vet.upenn.edu>].
* * * * *
Official Notice to Members
The blank space that follows below in this column is reserved exclusively for input provided by you - so let's hear from you before our next issue.