PZP-22: MULTI-YEAR REVERSIBLE CONTRACEPTION FOR WILD HORSES AND DEER
This presentation, which was originally presented on August 18, 2020, addresses the development, assessment and application of PZP-22 controlled-release vaccine as a management tool with a focus on wild horses and deer.
About The Presenters
JOHN TURNER, PhD
John W. Turner, Jr. is an endocrinologist (PhD, Cornell University; Postdoctoral training, UCLA) with extensive expertise in reproductive biology and stress physiology. He is a Professor of Physiology engaged in teaching and research at the University of Toledo College of Medicine (UTCOM) and his research endeavors have included pioneering research in the field of wildlife contraception, effects of chronically deteriorating habitats on stress levels of wildlife and fish and the psychophysiology of human stress-related disorders and their treatment. He has 45 years of direct field experience with more than 10 different wild horse populations and has been heavily involved in the research, development and testing of native PZP and PZP-22 controlled-release contraceptive vaccine and their applications in multiple species. His research efforts have involved collaboration with investigators at 12 US and 4 foreign universities and have yielded 120 peer-reviewed journal papers and reviews, with 71 of those peer reviewed journal paper in wildlife contraception and PZP-related research. He has served as a wildlife-contraception management consultant for the US Forest Service and for more than 20 parks and preserves worldwide. His awards include the US Forest Service Chief Award (2005) and two University Career Research Awards (2006; 2012).
ALLEN RUTBERG, PhD
Dr. Allen Rutberg is Director of the Tufts Center for Animals and Public Policy and research associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. Trained as a behavioral ecologist, he earned his Ph.D. in zoology at the University of Washington, Seattle, in 1984, and carried out field studies on American bison and wild horses. After a stint teaching undergraduate biology at Vassar College and elsewhere, Dr. Rutberg joined The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) as senior scientist for wildlife and habitat protection, where he served from 1991 to 2000. At HSUS, he initiated field studies of immunocontraceptive vaccines for the control of deer and wild horse populations, which he has continued since joining the Cummings School faculty in 2000. At Cummings School, he also directs the M.S. program in Animals in Public Policy, teaching classes in wildlife policy, wildlife in captivity, and policy communication, and mentoring student research and internships.