Resident wins fellowship grant

Continuing the tradition of cooperation between industry and academia, Merck Sharp and Dohme Research Laboratories have sponsored a second postdoctoral fellowship grant in Laboratory Animal Medicine at the University. James Hawkins, a postdoctoral resident at the University, has been awarded the fellowship. Hawkins, a graduate of Auburn Veterinary School, will be studying comparative medicine during his fellowship, which began last June. Comparative medicine is the study of using animals as models for research of human disease. Hawkins will also work in many of the University's schools and departments. The fellowship is a part of the larger Laboratory Animal Medicine Program at the University. This three-year program, which began in 1987, has had 15 graduate veterinarian participants. The Merck grant covers all costs of the program and provides a stipend to the fellows. The Laboratory Animal Medicine Program consists of residency training and a program of study that culminates in a Master's of Science Degree, according to Harry Rozmiarek, director of the program. The program has several sources of funding at the University. The National Institute for Health provides a training grant, and Merck and other industrial companies contribute money. Merck's involvement in the program also includes a one month internship for participants at Merck's Department of Laboratory Animal Resources in West Point, Pa. This experience gives the participants an opportunity to attain private sector experience, which Hawkins said is essential. "A large number of vets work in industry," Hawkins said. "The way a drug company operates is quite different from academia. The private [industry] is a little more highly structured." Reaction to the Merck fellowships and the Laboratory Animal Medicine Program has been positive. "The program is flexible to the resident," Hawkins said. "The doctors and staff are responsive." "We are delighted to have Merck cooperate in the program," Rozmiarek said. "We hope and expect that they will continue their involvement."