REGISTRY UPDATE:
"Please help us to welcome Dr. Hannah Bender as she joins the Australian Registry of Wildlife Health in the role of Wildlife Pathologist.
Hannah joins us to enhance the diagnostic and research services of the Registry, working closely with both Karrie and Jane in the Registry, and Lydia Tong in the Pathology Lab of the Taronga Wildlife Hospital.
Hannah is a veterinary pathologist with a long held interest in wildlife health and conservation. After graduating from the University of Sydney’s faculty of Veterinary Science in 2005, Hannah undertook a PhD studying the genomic basis of Tasmanian devil facial tumour disease (DFTD) at The Australian National University. Hannah was fortunate to participate in collaborative, multi-disciplinary field trips throughout Tasmania, working alongside conservation biologists, ecologists and epidemiologists to characterise the pathogenesis of an unusual emerging disease. She used molecular cytogenetic techniques to confirm DFTD clonality, and collaborated on tumour sequencing projects to identify the DFTD cell of origin. Hannah additionally identified a novel pattern of telomere length dimorphism in dasyurid marsupials, consolidating her belief that Australian animals are some of the strangest, and most surprising and rewarding species to study.
Hannah subsequently undertook three years of residency training in anatomic pathology at Cornell University, followed by a fellowship in comparative pathology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York. During this time she gained broad exposure to a rich variety of veterinary and zoonotic diseases in species ranging from cats and dogs, to bats and skunks. She was fortunate to participate in the 2012 AQUAVET program, nurturing a budding interest in aquatic animal pathology. Hannah’s term in the USA culminated in board certification by the American College of Veterinary Pathologists, and in 2013 Hannah returned to Australia, first to a lectureship at Murdoch University, followed by a year at the Australian Animal Health Laboratory, evaluating Ebola virus pathogenesis in a ferret model of disease.
Hannah couldn’t be more excited to join the Registry and looks forward to collaborating with a great team, and to utilising her experience in diagnostic and experimental pathology to investigate disease outbreaks in free ranging wildlife."
Please don’t hesitate to contact Hannah on 02-9932-4201, or hbender@zoo.nsw.gov.au