Mary Rossano, Ph.D

Professional Profile

Major Research Interests:

Equine epidemiology: surveys and observational studies of outcomes of management practices and factors associated with health, performance, profitability and environmental impact.

Current position:

7/07 – Present: Assistant Professor, Department of Animal and Food Sciences, University of Kentucky. 70% teaching, 30% research.

Courses taught:

• ASC 320 Equine Management, lecture and laboratory
• ASC 320, Section 201, Introduction to Equine Management, online version through Distance Learning Programs (Fall and Spring semesters)
• GEN 109 Horse Behavior and Handling
• Co-instructor for ASC 101 Domestic Animal Biology

Previous professional positions:

12/04 – 7/07: Project Director, FINS study (Effects of organochlorines on male infertility), Department of Epidemiology, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University. Manager of a multi-center NIH-funded study on the effects of environmental contaminants on male fertility.

4/04 – 11/04: Postdoctoral Fellow at the Comparative Enteric Disease Laboratory, Michigan State University, under the direction of Dr. Linda Mansfield.

2/00- 12/03: Graduate Assistant at the Population Medicine Center, Michigan State University. Designed and implemented a controlled field intervention study and an experimental infection study of the effect of daily pyrantel tartrate in preventing infection with Sarcocystis neurona (the causative agent of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM)). 

1/98- 2/00: Parasitology Research Aid, Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Michigan State University. Worked on development of new western blot antibody test for EPM and performed daily clinical testing. 

1995-97: Graduate Assistant at the Population Medicine Center, Michigan State University. Designed and implemented a cross-sectional survey study of health problems in U.S. dressage horses. Designed and implemented an extensive cross-sectional study of anti-S. neurona antibody seroprevalence in Michigan equids.

Patents:

2000 Immunoassay for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis in horses. Linda S. Mansfield, Alice J. Murphy, Mary G. Rossano. U.S. patent number 6,153,394.

2002 Antigen test to detect equine protozoal myeloencephalitis in horse serum and cerebrospinal fluid. Linda S. Mansfield, Mary G. Rossano, Alice J. Murphy, Ruth A. Vrable. U.S. patent number 6,344,337

2002 Immunoassay for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis in horses. Linda S. Mansfield, Alice J. Murphy, Mary G. Rossano. US patent number 6,489,148.

Education

2003 Ph.D.Michigan State University Epidemiology/Parasitology

1999M.S.Michigan State University Animal Science/Epidemiology

1994B.S.Michigan State University Animal Science

1991Cert.Michigan State University Horse Management

Areas of Interest

advisor, Epidemiology, equine clubs and teams, equine education, equine research, equine science and management degree, graduate education, parasitology, undergraduate education