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Comparative Medicine
Dr. Kylie Kavanagh

Kylie Kavanagh, DVM

Assistant Professor of Pathology (Comparative Medicine)
Tel: (336) 716-1555
Fax: (336) 716-1515
kkavanag@wfubmc.edu

Education:
  • Undergraduate: Murdoch University, Australia: BS, 1992
  • Postgraduate: Murdoch University: DVM, 1996; University of Melbourne: MS 1999; University of North Carolina: MPH, 2010 
  • Residency: University of Melbourne: Veterinary Internal Medicine, 1997-1999 
  • Fellowships: University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana: Clinical Pharmacology, 1999-2002; Wake Forest University: Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, 2003-2005
Interests:
  • Research: Nutrition, obesity and insulin sensitivity; mechanisms of cardiovascular disease in diabetes and the role of heat shock proteins in diabetic complications; lipid metabolism 
  • Clinical: Nutrition and health
Current Research: 

My interests lie in understanding how a chronic hyperglycaemic state changes the body's ability to cope with metabolic stress. High glucose not only increases the oxidative load on all cells but also impairs the ability to respond and cope with that insult. I am particularly interested in the chaperone proteins (heat shock protein family) and their loss of inducibility with diabetes, the changes in extracellular matrix and antioxidant super oxide dismutases which can lead to further cell damage which can manifest as endothelial dysfunction and eventual atherogenesis. We are also actively researching nutritional influences on obesity and carbohydrate metabolism, looking particularly at the effects of different fat and protein sources and hope to expand these findings into evaluating pre- and post-natal effects of maternal nutrition. 

Recent Publications:

Saito Y, Butler AE, Manesso E, Galasso R, Zhang L, Gurlo T, Toffolo GM, Cobelli C, Kavanagh K, Wagner JD, Butler PC. Relationship between fractional pancreatic beta cell area and fasting blood glucose concentration in non-human primates. Diabetologia 2009 in press

 

Kavanagh K, Davis MA, Zhang L, Wilson MD, Register TC, Adams MR, Rudel LL, Wagner JD. Estrogen decreases atherosclerosis in part by reducing hepatic acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase 2 (ACAT2) in monkeys. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2009 Oct;29(10):1471-7.

Clark PB, Kavanagh K, Gage HD, Garg P, Garg S, Calles-Escandon J, Wagner JD, Morton K. Enhanced cholinergic response in pancreata of nonhuman primates with impaired glucose tolerance shown on [(18)f]fluorobenzyltrozamicol positron emission tomography. Diabetes Technol Ther. 2009 Jul;11(7):451-5.

Kavanagh K, Jones KL, Zhang L, Flynn DM, Shadoan MK, Wagner JD. High isoflavone soy diet increases insulin secretion without decreasing insulin sensitivity in premenopausal nonhuman primates. Nutr Res. 2008 Jun;28(6):368-76.

Kavanagh K, Zhang L, Wagner JD. Tissue-specific regulation and expression of heat shock proteins in type 2 diabetic monkeys. Cell Stress Chaperones. 2008 Oct 9.

Wagner JD, Zhang L, Shadoan MK, Kavanagh K, Chen H, Tresnasari K, Kaplan JR, Adams MR. Effects of soy protein and isoflavones on insulin resistance and adiponectin in male monkeys. Metabolism. 2008 Jul;57(7 Suppl 1):S24-31.

Kavanagh K, Jones KL, Sawyer J, Kelley K, Carr JJ, Wagner JD, Rudel LL. Trans fat diet induces abdominal obesity and changes in insulin sensitivity in monkeys. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2007 Jul;15(7):1675-84.

Kavanagh K, Fairbanks LA, Bailey JN, Jorgensen MJ, Wilson M, Zhang L, Rudel LL, Wagner JD. Characterization and heritability of obesity and associated risk factors in vervet monkeys. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2007 Jul;15(7):1666-74.

Shadoan MK, Kavanagh K, Zhang L, Anthony MS, Wagner JD.  Addition of medroxyprogesterone acetate to conjugated equine estrogens results in insulin resistance in adipose tissue. Metabolism. 2007 Jun;56(6):830-7.

Wagner JE, Kavanagh K, Ward GM, Auerbach BJ, Harwood HJ Jr, Kaplan JR. Old world nonhuman primate models of type 2 diabetes mellitus. ILAR J. 2006;47(3):259-71.

Kavanagh K, Koudy Williams J, Wagner JD. Naturally occurring menopause in cynomolgus monkeys: changes in hormone, lipid, and carbohydrate measures with hormonal status. J Med Primatol. 2005 Aug;34(4):171-7.

Kavanagh K. Sick sinus syndrome in a bull terrier. Can Vet J. 2002 43(1):46-48.

Kavanagh K, Gelderman D. Oral glycosaminoglycans; A survey of responses. Aust Vet J. 1999 77(4); 220-221.

Kavanagh K, Mills JN. Measuring electrolytes: An evaluation of the IDEXX Vetlyte Ion Selective Electrode method. Aust Vet Practic. (1997) 27(2); 25-30.