Vet Cetera magazine 2015

2015 CLASS OF 1963 DISTINGUISHED LECTURE
Healthy People
BETTER VETERINARY PRACTICES IMPROVE FOOD SAFETY, EXPERT SAYS
PHIL SHOCKLEY / UNIVERSITY MARKETING
Drs. Stan W. Casteel (from left), CVHS Dean Jean Sander and Class of ’63 representative Thomas Loafmann visit at the event.
The increasing safety of the
food supply was the focus of
the keynote speech at OSU’s
Center for Veterinary Health Sciences’
2015 annual conference
for veterinarians and veterinary
technicians.
Stan W. Casteel, DVM, Ph.D.,
DABVT, presented “Back Then,
Now, What’s Next for Veterinary
Medicine.”
“I think the food supply is safer
than ever. Animal agriculture is
increasingly consolidating which
includes pig farms and cattle operations,”
Casteel said during his
speech. “Since 1940, production
efficiencies have increased. Meat
produced today per sow is double
what it was in 1940.”
Casteel also discussed antibiotic
use in food animals.
“I think it is a myth that antibiotic
free animals in general are
better for us. Residue testing procedures
are better, and we’re not
finding antibiotic residue in food
animals. In Denmark, a ban on
antibiotic use resulted in increased
mortality, a reduction in weight
gain and an increased incidence
of salmonellosis.”
Casteel added that 75 percent
of emerging infectious diseases
are zoonotic, which highlights the
connection between animal health
and human health.
“There are changes of susceptibility
in our own population due
to immunosuppression,” he said.
“We also have microbial adaptation.
Every year we have the influenza
virus to deal with. It changes
its antigenic character in just a
matter of months and the vaccine
industry can’t always keep up with
it. Approximately 36,000 people
per year in this country die from
influenza, which usually affects
the very young and the very old.
Because we have global transportation,
we have the potential to
spread diseases around the planet
within 24 to 48 hours quite easily.”
Casteel also discussed bioterrorism
and its potential impact on animal
and human health.
“I think the concern here is that
bioterrorism could easily attack
both our food supply and our
human population,” he said. “We
need more veterinarians with
advanced degrees in virology
and bacteriology to keep track of
emerging infectious diseases that
could affect us all.”
Casteel is a professor of veterinary
pathobiology at the University
of Missouri’s College of
Veterinary Medicine and a Diplomate
of the American Board of
Veterinary Toxicology. He has 28
years of experience as a researcher,
teacher and diagnostician of animal
diseases.
THE LECTURESHIP
In 2004, the Class of 1963 established its Distinguished Lectureship
Endowment. The money earned from this investment
hosts an annual expert speaker on a variety of subjects related
to veterinary medicine, human health and environmental factors.
2015 Oklahoma State University 23