Darrel K. Styles


Darrel Styles currently works as a Veterinary Medical Officer for the United States Department of Agriculture Animal Plant Health Inspection Service. Darrel has also served as a Research Associate and Lecturer for the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas. Additionally, Darrel has also served as the following:

  - Veterinarian/Clinician - Westgate Pet and Bird Hospital, Austin Texas
  - Veterinarian/Manager/Partner - Hill Country Aviaries, LLC
  - Research Associate Veterinarian - Texas A&M University, Dept. of Veterinary Pathobiology, College Station, Texas
  - Veterinarian - All Pets Veterinary Group, Inc, Miami, Florida

Darrel has also written numerous papers and provides informational lectures to professional and lay groups on diseases affecting poultry and non-domestic avian populations, especially HPAI, and provides technical advice on avian disease mitigation and deliver lectures to audiences at national and international level including regulatory agencies and academia.

Currently, Darrel is also involved in the following projects:

Regulatory: Darrel began working with USDA APHIS in March 2006 in the Animal Care program where he completed draft regulations in 2007 for birds, mice, and rats in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act. The proposed rule is currently being subjected to departmental clearance.

Domestic Animal Disease Mitigation: Responsible for organizing an international symposium with the scientific community and regulators to explore extant and novel technologies relating to the mass depopulation of poultry in response to catastrophic disease such as HPAI H5N1. APHIS identified a key novel technology, water-based foam, and Darrel wrote the criteria and engineering performance standards for the use of that technology.

Foreign Animal Disease Mitigation – Avian Influenza: Darrel serves the technical advisor to USDA’s Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza International Coordination Group. Part of his work is to advise USDA and other USG entities (US State Department and USAID) on the validity of mitigation efforts and strategic planning for disease control activities. Darrel has served as the technical liaison to USAID on HPAI issues and also visits countries where the disease is active in order to provide disease risk analysis and consult with host government scientists and other partners involved in control efforts.

The primary focus of Darrel's work has been in Indonesia, where he has spent at least a 3.5 month cumulative total spent in the field, and engaged in planning activities year round with the APHIS office in Jakarta. He has provided technical briefs on the current HPAI situation in Indonesia to the Ambassador and the USDA International HPAI Coordination Group. Darrel has also assisted with the strategic plan for USDA’s HPAI mitigation efforts in Indonesia. This plan focuses on biosecurity for the commercial poultry sector and is a long range strategy for restructuring the poultry industry and markets. In March 2008 at a symposium in Dakar, Senegal, Darrel addressed 29 Chief Veterinary Officers of African nations on the technical aspects of avian influenza vaccination of poultry.

Foreign Animal Disease Mitigation – General: Darrel has assisted the Department and other USG agencies including the State Department with providing technical information on FAD threats and relevant public health information. This is generally an “on-demand” activity and typically the communication is in the form of a mini-review or white paper.

Darrel is also assisting in the development of a national surveillance system and epidemiology center for US American Zoological and Aquarium accredited facilities. The platform model will be HPAI H5N1 but the network will include the capacity for other FADs including FMD, MCF, ASF, etc. This system will include comprehensive response plans for State and Federal regulators working in conjunction with zoological personnel to prevent and/or contain relevant FADs that may arise with the zoo system. The plans include Surveillance and Monitoring; Outbreak Management and Response; and Vaccination (for relevant diseases only).

Research Activities: Darrel is actively engaged with colleagues in the experimental planning and execution of an HPAI H5N1 DNA vaccine project for poultry with the National Institute of Health Vaccine Research Center. They have tested a viable DNA vaccine for use in poultry that will protect against multiple serotypes of HPAI H5N1. Experiments are currently being planned for equine and porcine species and those should be initiated shortly employing species-relevant strains.

Conservation Activities: Darrel works with multiple endangered avian conservation projects around the world as the technical advisor on disease risk. This has included projects in Mexico, Costa Rica, Brazil, El Salvador, and Guatemala. His most recent work was in March 2008 in Guatemala, providing technical advice on re-introduction efforts of endangered parrot species. Darrel also has continuing commitments to a number of bird conservation organizations and provide disease related information when necessary.

Speaker's Topic #1: Basic Avian Genetics of Psittacine Color Mutations: Lineage and Physical Science of Color Generation
Speaker's Topic #2: Psittacine Infectious and Metabolic Diseases: Surveillance, Prevention, and Treatment

 

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