In news from the world of veterinary medicinal product development, the State Scientific Control Institute of Veterinary Medicinal Products and Feed Additives in Lviv, Ukraine is moving forward with an innovative research project using Mitra^® microsampling devices, powered by Volumetric Absorptive Microsampling (VAMS™) technology. The laboratory has developed a quick and accurate LC-MS/MS method for measuring florfenicol, an antibiotic used on farm animals.

The Future of Animal Blood Sampling 

Volumetric Absorptive Microsampling (VAMS™) technology brings new convenience and accuracy to specimen collection from livestock and companion animals. When implementing a microsampling workflow, vet diagnostic organizations can embrace a simple, accurate, quantitative method, while improving the sampling experience for both animals and humans. 

The last case of rinderpest in the world was eliminated in 2001. What was rinderpest? It was a deadly disease of cattle and buffalo throughout history that caused civilizations to fall and millions of people to starve as their work animals and food sources died. Now, like smallpox in humans, it's gone.

Watson and Crick may have had little notion, when they discovered the double helix structure of DNA, how far that molecule would go. In 1985, the uniqueness of each individual's DNA led a British forensic scientist to the identity of a murderer and DNA testing was born. Now the tests are available to anyone. Genetic disorders are the major concerns driving the upsurge in DNA testing. Hundreds of hereditary diseases can be detected and possibly avoided. But you can also find out if that family legend of an Apache ancestor is true.

The practice of vet diagnostics has come of age. It's a field that is growing tremendously, fueled by the need to control and prevent diseases and to better understand the creatures we depend on. Data from millions of animal fluids and tissue samples helps create drugs and vaccines, restrict animal movement, formulate policy on nutrition, and inform the body of knowledge.