Boehringer Ingelheim Announces 2007 PRRS Research Award Recipients

New research efforts focus on transmission, risk factors and diagnostic monitoring of PRRS.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., (BIVI) announces the recipients of its 2007 Advancement in PRRS Research Awards. This year’s selected research programs focus on the development of monitoring and sample diagnostic guidelines, risk factors and transmission of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS).

Each year $75,000 is awarded to support three separate studies by independent swine researchers and practitioners in their investigation of new ways to diagnose, control and eradicate this costly swine disease. This is the fifth year that Boehringer Ingelheim has sponsored the PRRS research awards, which have been critical in improving the industry’s understanding of the disease.

The following are the 2007 award recipients and their research proposals recognized at the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV) Conference in Orlando, Fla.:

• Dr. Jeff Zimmerman
  Iowa State University, Ames
  Research award to develop an inexpensive and convenient method for PRRS virus monitoring; to evaluate the stability of PRRS virus; and to develop guidelines for handling and diagnostic monitoring of oral fluid samples.



• Dr. Derald Holtkamp
  Iowa State University, Ames
  Research award to conduct a cross-sectional study of PRRS-positive swine breeding herd sites to evaluate the association between risk factors and a case definition based on number and severity of clinical PRRS episodes.



• Dr. Bob Morrison
  University of Minnesota
  For his research proposal to estimate, quantify and compare PRRS virus transmission information between pigs of different PRRS vaccination status.

Daryl Olsen, DVM, AASV President Elect and PRRS Research Review Board member, says ongoing PRRS research activities contribute greatly to industry efforts to manage this disease. “However, in spite of sound research and many years of hard work, producers and veterinarians continue to battle this costly and frustrating disease. This puts greater importance on industry support of research programs that improve monitoring, diagnostics and detection processes for the PRRS virus, resulting in reduced transmission and infection rates for the disease.”

The independent PRRS Research Review Board conducted a rigorous evaluation of a number of submitted proposals. The three studies were selected based on established criteria that include potential for economic impact to the swine industry; originality and scientific quality; and probability of success in completing the study.

Proposal entries for the 2008 PRRS Research Awards are due Jan. 1, 2008. For more information visit www.PRRSresearch.com.

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (St. Joseph, MO), is a subsidiary of Boehringer Ingelheim Corporation based in Ridgefield, CT and a member of the Boehringer Ingelheim group of companies.

The Boehringer Ingelheim group is one of the world’s 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, it operates globally with 143 affiliates in 47 countries and approximately 37,500 employees. Since it was founded in 1885, the family-owned company has been committed to researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing novel products of high therapeutic value for human and veterinary medicine.

In 2005, Boehringer Ingelheim posted net sales of US $11.8 billion (9.5 billion euro) while spending approximately one-fifth of net sales in its largest business segment, Prescription Medicines, on research and development.

For more information, please visit: www.bi-vetmedica.com.