Did You Know?
Six of the 10 most commonly used equine vaccines were developed at the Maxwell H.
Gluck Equine Research Center, including those against equine rhinopneumonitis (rhino),
equine viral arteritis, strangles and influenza.)
The first test for the diagnosis of horses affected with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis
(EPM), a parasitic neurological disease occurring in horses in the Western Hemisphere,
was developed by researchers at the Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center.
Further research into Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis by scientists at the Maxwell
H. Gluck Equine Research Center spawned the development of the first FDA-approved
medication available for treating the disease.
The first multivalent vaccine against equine influenza, a viral respiratory disease
which affects a large percentage of the horse population each year, was developed
at the Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center.
A group of Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center scientists, in collaboration
with other University of Kentucky College of Agriculture researchers, helped determine
the cause of the early fetal losses, late-term abortions and other problems that
occurred as a result of Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome (MRLS).
A Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center scientist initiated and was the first
author of the “white paper” developed in 2005 that led to full genome sequencing
of the horse by the National Human Genome Research Institute.
The first vaccine for Streptococcus equi (strangles) was developed at the Maxwell
H. Gluck Equine Research Center and became commercially available in 1969.
In 1984, an epidemic of equine viral arteritis (EVA) enabled Maxwell H. Gluck Equine
Research Center researchers for the first time to confirm existence of the "carrier"
state in stallions. This knowledge has been pivotal in devising effective strategies
for controlling the spread of EVA.
Since 1993, the Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center has been designated by the
Office International des Epizooties (World Organization for Animal Health) as a
World Reference Center for three significant equine viral diseases:
- Equine rhinopneumonitis
- Equine influenza
- Equine viral arteritis
In 1999, Gluck Center researchers were involved in the development of a highly successful
intranasal vaccine for equine subtype 2 influenza virus.