Dr. Julio Alvarez earned his DVM, PhD in Veterinary Science, and Diploma de
Estudios Avanzados in Spain. He is currently an associate professor at the
VISAVET Health Surveillance Center. Previously, he served as head of the Unit
of Neglected and Emerging Diseases at VISAVET and held postdoctoral research
positions at the Spanish Wildlife Research Institute (IREC) and the Ramón y
Cajal Research Institute (IRYCIS), focusing on bacterial zoonotic diseases in
wildlife and humans. Dr. Alvarez’s research focuses on applying quantitative
approaches to study the epidemiology of infectious diseases at the
human–animal–environment interface. Over the past five years, he has supervised
four PhD students and serves as a scientific advisor to the European Laboratory
for Bovine Tuberculosis.
Dr. Montserrat Torremorell received a Doctor of Veterinary
Medicine from Autonomous University of Barcelona in 1994. She received a PhD
from the University of Minnesota in 1999. Currently, she is a professor at the
Veterinary Population Medicine Department, College of Veterinary Medicine,
University of Minnesota. She is an animal health expert emphasizing infectious
diseases and strategies to improve the health of pigs. She was awarded the
“Outstanding Swine Academic of the Year” by the American Association of Swine
Veterinarians in 2022. Her work focuses on understanding the transmission of
infectious diseases of swine with emphasis on influenza, PRRS, and other
devastating viruses affecting pigs. She also researches biosecurity
technologies that are applicable to prevent and mitigate airborne infections in
livestock. Ultimately, her interest resides in controlling and eliminating
diseases from agricultural animals. Her research impacts animal disease, public
health, sustainability of food production systems, and food security.
Dr. Marie Rene Culhane earned her DVM and PhD in Infectious Diseases from
the University of Minnesota, College of Veterinary Medicine, where she is a
professor in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine. Specializing in
diseases of food animals, particularly swine, her research focuses on the
antigenic and genetic characterization of influenza A viruses in swine and
turkeys. She investigates the pathogenesis of these infections and their impact
on vaccination protocols in the U.S. livestock industry. Additionally, Dr.
Culhane actively contributes to animal disease emergency planning at local,
national, and international levels, emphasizing disease surveillance, control,
and prevention.
