The Cornell Feline Health Center Research Grant Program provides vital financial support to Cornell researchers investigating issues that affect feline health. Projects currently funded by the Cornell Feline Health Center range from studies of feline GI disorders to feline cancer.

Scientific research has made feline medicine what it is today, and it’s making a healthier, happier tomorrow possible for cats around the world. If you believe in the positive power of our work to make a difference, please consider making a donation to the Cornell Feline Health Center today.

2025- 2026 Funded Research Projects:

Novel Tools to Combat Influenza A H5N1Virus in Felids

The H5N1 avian flu represents a significant threat to domestic and wild feline populations, poultry, livestock, a variety of wild and captive mammalian and avian species, and to public health. Domestic cats are susceptible to H5N1 infection, and the disease caused by infection in cats is among the most severe of all species in which infections have thus far been identified, with up to 70% of cats infected succumbing to their infections.

Importantly, there is currently no vaccine available to protect cats against this rapidly emerging disease. This study will use cutting edge technologies to monitor feline immune responses elicited by several H5N1 candidate vaccines developed by the Diel laboratory as an important step toward the development of vaccines that will protect cats against H5N1 infections.

Investigator: Diego Diel D.V.M., Ph.D.

Microneedle-Based Antibiotic Delivery Patches for Localized Treatment of Feline Periodontitis

Periodontitis (inflammation of the tissues surrounding the teeth) is a common problem in cats (found in up to 90% of cats over three years of age) that can lead to significant discomfort, tooth loss, and, in some cases, serious systemic complications.

The current treatment options for feline periodontitis are centered on mechanical scaling of the teeth, often combined with systemic antibiotics and, in some cases, anti-inflammatory drugs. While these treatments can be helpful, owner compliance can be difficult to sustain, and they are not often fully curative and can cause systemic side-effects.

To address these problems, the current study is investigating the development of a novel, minimally invasive biodegradable micro-needle delivery system designed for controlled, local delivery of drugs to feline periodontal tissue. If successful, this modality has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of feline (and, perhaps ultimately, human) periodontitis.

Investigator: Santiago Peralta D.V.M.

Two Sides of the Same Coin: EMT and Immunosuppression in Feline and Human Mammary Carcinomas

Feline mammary carcinoma (FMA) is a highly malignant form of breast cancer that carries a particularly poor prognosis for cats in which it is diagnosed. It is the third most common form of cancer in cats and is the leading cause of feline cancer-related deaths.

FMA has recently been recognized as being biologically similar to certain types of human breast cancer that have shown favorable responses to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB), a type of therapy that uses drugs that inhibit interaction among important proteins in the immune response, thereby altering this response.

Although ICB holds promise as a treatment for breast cancer, a process called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which allows cancerous cells to invade other, non-cancerous tissue, can interfere with ICB’s ability to treat certain cancers, including some types of breast cancer. Importantly, EMT can lead to resistance to ICB in some types of human breast cancers.

Using cutting edge techniques, the aims of this study are focused on improving our understanding of EMT and its role in the immune response (as well as its potential effects on ICB) in FMC cells. The insights provided by its results are anticipated to have important implications for the use of ICB therapy in both feline and human mammary cancers.

Investigator: Anushka Dongre Ph.D.

Multi-Omic Investigation of Feline Chronic Gingivostomatitis

Feline Chronic Gingivostomatitis (FCG) is a common inflammatory disease of the mucous membranes of the oral cavity that affects approximately 12% of domestic cats. Affected cats commonly experience painful erosive lesions of their gums, tongue, palate, and throat that lead to difficulty eating, loss of appetite, weight loss, and a significant decrease in their quality of life. 

The cause of FCG has yet to be definitively determined, but some evidence suggests that it may be due to an abnormal immune response to bacterial and/or viruses in the oral cavity. Current treatment options include a combination of surgical and immunosuppressive therapies, but these treatments are usually only partially effective.

This study will use cutting edge molecular biologic techniques to improve our understanding of the role of genetics and epigenetics (the impact of the environment on gene expression) in the development of FCG. Its results hold the promise of improved therapies and strategies to prevent FCG. 

Investigator: Jacqueline Evans, Ph.D.

Evaluating Serum N-terminal Prohormone of Brain Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP) Levels in Cats with Chronic Kidney Disease

Biomarkers are substances that can be measured in the body to diagnose a disease or to monitor its progression and/or response to therapy. While they are an important diagnostic tool, the interpretation of biomarker concentrations can sometimes be complicated by factors other than the function/health of the organ that they are being used to evaluate.

A good example of this is the use of N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) to diagnose abnormal stretching of the myocardium (heart muscle). NT-proBNP is produced by myocardial cells in response to their being inappropriately stretched, as commonly occurs with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), the most common heart disease of cats. It is not normally found to any appreciable extent in the bloodstream, and an elevated NT-proBNP measurement in the bloodstream of a cat is consistent with the notion that its heart is experiencing abnormal stretching. This forms the basis for its use as a biomarker of heart disease in cats.

Unfortunately, the levels of NT-pro-BNP in the blood can also be affected by kidney function, as it is removed from the bloodstream by the kidneys. For this reason, cats with kidney disease (i.e. chronic kidney disease, or CKD, a common problem in cats) can present with elevated NT-proBNP levels even if they do not have heart disease, complicating the use of this biomarker for the identification of heart disease in cats with kidney disease.

This study will compare NT-proBNP levels of cats with varying degrees of CKD to those of cats with preclinical HCM (those not demonstrating symptoms of heart disease) to establish cutoff values that will improve our ability to distinguish cats with elevated NT-proBNP due to CKD from those with pro-BNP elevations due to heart disease. 

Investigator: Shana Mintz, D.V.M.

Utilization of Power Doppler and Microvascular Flow Ultrasound Imaging for the Evaluation of Renal Cortical Perfusion in Cats with Chronic Kidney Disease

Kidney disease is a common problem in cats, affecting up to 80% of cats over 10 years of age. While blood and urine tests can be used to diagnose later stage kidney disease in cats, they are not generally able to identify problems in the kidney during early stages of the disease. This is a significant problem, because early intervention is vital to forestalling kidney disease progression and improving outcomes.

This study will investigate the ability of two advanced ultrasound technologies, power Doppler and microvascular flow, to detect early changes in blood flow to the kidney that may contribute to the development of kidney disease in cats.

The results of this study have the potential to dramatically improve our ability to diagnose feline kidney disease at earlier stages than is currently possible, allowing for earlier interventions and promoting improved outcomes in this common and impactful affliction of cats.

Investigator: Amy Todd-Donato, D.V.M.