Kurt J. Vandegrift
Dr. Kurt J. Vandegrift is a biologist, disease ecologist, and epidemiologist specializing in population biology and analyzing the spread of wildlife and agricultural pathogens. As a Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow with Wildlife Trust, Kurt is involved in a collaborative NIH Fogarty project focused on collecting critical data related to highly pathogenic avian influenza. The global scientific team will examine the risk of viral persistence and spill over into human populations.
Kurt will be leading field teams in both China and Bangladesh, where the virus is suspected to have become endemic. This year Kurt will be surveying wild waterfowl for avian influenza and examining the role of live bird markets in the spread of this pathogen.
Kurt received his B.S. in biology and psychology from Juniata College. During that time Kurt became the senior research scientist in the primate research facility where he studied learning and memory functions of Capuchin monkeys (Cebus Apella).
At Pennsylvania State University Kurt earned a M.S. in poultry science. In his master’s research he used artificial neural networks to analyze poultry growth rates and to diagnose subsequent susceptibility to pulmonary hypertension syndrome. He also instructed an animal nutrition course at the university.
For his Ph.D., Kurt focused on wildlife disease ecology where he demonstrated how intestinal macroparasites could potentially play a role in the population dynamics of small mammals – in particular rodents. These animals are known reservoirs for a great number of zoonotic pathogens including hantavirus. During this project, Kurt discovered a new species of parasitic nematode (Heligmosomoides vandegrifti) that was subsequently named after him. His masters work also included researching the impact of periodical cicadas as food resources for small mammals.
Kurt is currently an adjunct faculty member of Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health and his research has been published in prestigious journals such as Ecology, The Journal of Animal Ecology, International Journal for Parasitology, and Poultry Science. During his Ph.D. tenure, he taught courses in introductory biology, animal physiology, animal behavior, and experimental field biology.
