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Mission
Since its creation in
1974, the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory's (WADDL) primary
objective has been to serve the state of Washington. The laboratory is an
integral part of a network of tax-supported state diagnostic reference
facilities throughout the U.S. dedicated to the betterment of animal and human
health. WADDL has a responsibility to provide appropriate, timely results to
safeguard the health of livestock, pets, poultry, and fish in the Pacific
Northwest and to protect the public from zoonotic diseases. Advice and
consultation are provided to practicing veterinarians, animal industry groups,
state and federal regulatory officials, and physicians.
Service
In 1979, WADDL was the
first laboratory in the western United States to achieve accredited full
service laboratory status under the auspices of the American Association of
Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians. The laboratory has been re-accredited
continuously since.
WADDL includes a main
laboratory located on the Pullman campus, and the Avian Health Laboratory
located on the campus of the Western Washington Regional Extension Center in
Puyallup, Washington. WADDL provides essential laboratory services in
bacteriology, parasitology, pathology, serology, toxicology (through the
Analytical Sciences Laboratory, University of Idaho), and virology. The
laboratory responds to requests from all 39 counties in Washington, most
counties in Idaho and, to a lesser degree, all Pacific Northwest States as
well as Alaska and Hawaii. Annual requests for all laboratory services total
over 13,600 accessions, resulting in 179,000 laboratory examinations. In
addition to providing service to the private sector, the laboratory services
the WSU veterinary teaching hospital, university herds and flocks, WSU
laboratory animal programs, and the Field Disease Investigation Unit (FDIU) .
WADDL also provides centralized service for the college by providing histology support.
National
Animal Health Laboratory Network
The Washington
Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory is a founding member of the National
Animal Health Laboratory Network. Implemented in 2003, this network of 12
regional laboratories is responsible for surveillance of and response to
exotic disease outbreaks affecting livestock. As a part of the network, the
WADDL works closely with USDA in developing, validating and implementing high
throughput molecular assays for eight different exotic agents, all of which
are considered high priority agroterrorist pathogens, including Foot and Mouth
Disease, Classical Swine Fever, Exotic Newcastle Disease, Highly Pathogenic
Avian Influenza and others.
Map of regional
laboratories (click to enlarge)
Teaching
Although
WADDL does not have instructional department status, its faculty
provide instruction in the DVM and graduate programs. Senior
students in the professional curriculum receive valuable experience
in all aspects of animal disease diagnostics, disease investigation,
and public health during a month-long elective rotation in the diagnostic
laboratory.
Graduate education is an
integral part of WADDL faculty's academic responsibilities. The dual training
program in anatomic pathology and research offered jointly by WADDL and the
Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology has long had a leadership
role in the training of modern biomedical scientists and board certified
veterinary pathologists. A similar training program in veterinary microbiology
was initiated in 1991 and is the only one of its kind in the United States.
Public Health and Zoonotic
Diseases
In addition to diagnosis of zoonotic infectious diseases,
which has traditionally been a part of the Washington Animal Disease
Diagnostic Laboratory’s service, recently the laboratory has undertaken
additional public health service roles including microbiologic testing for
pathogens and for sanitation for food industry clients (done predominantly at
the Puyallup Avian Health and Food Safety Laboratory) and West Nile Virus
surveillance in partnership with the Washington State Department of Health.
In 2004, WADDL began collaboration with the Washington Department of
Health in surveying animal populations for zoonotic agents such as plague and
tularemia that may be endemically present in the state. In addition, WADDL
will be a central participant in the newly established, NIH-funded WSU
Zoonosis Research Unit in the investigation of food- and waterborne zoonotic
pathogens in Washington state.
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