WDA and Davis-Thompson Foundation Wildlife Pathology Workshop

The workshop will begin with a presentation by Kevin Keel (University of California, Davis), Digital Pathology for Wildlife Disease Investigations: Opportunities, Challenges, and Practical Applications.

The presentation will examine the current and emerging roles of digital pathology in wildlife disease investigation, including whole-slide imaging, telepathology, remote consultation, diagnostic workflows, and applications in resource-limited settings. Particular emphasis will be placed on practical implementation, current technological limitations, and future directions for wildlife pathology and disease surveillance. The presentation will also provide an overview of the technology that underpins digital pathology.

The remainder of the day is devoted to an interactive histopathology workshop. Participants are encouraged to submit histopathology slides as unknown cases for evaluation and discussion. Cases may represent infectious, toxic, parasitic, metabolic, nutritional, developmental, degenerative, or neoplastic diseases affecting free-ranging or captive wildlife species.

Whole-slide images and limited case information will be distributed to registered participants before the workshop to allow independent evaluation and development of differential diagnoses.

Case presentations are limited to 15 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of discussion. Presenters are encouraged to focus on key clinical findings, gross lesions, histopathologic findings, ancillary diagnostics, and the final diagnosis.

Instructions For Case Submission
1. Submit one H&E-stained slide no later than July 10, 2026.

Slides should be limited to a single lesion or principal diagnostic process whenever possible and should be free of significant artifacts.

Digital whole-slide images will be accepted if generated at diagnostic quality and accompanied by the required case synopsis. However, submission of glass slides is strongly preferred.

Slides should be shipped to:
Kevin Keel, DVM, PhD, DACVP
Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology
School of Veterinary Medicine
University of California, Davis
One Shields Avenue
Davis, California 95616, USA

2. Submit a case synopsis and slide information by email to: mkkeel@ucdavis.edu
Please include “WDA Pathology Workshop” in the subject line.

Case Synopsis Requirements
The case synopsis should be limited to two pages and submitted as a Microsoft Word document or PDF file.
Page One should include:

• Contributor/s
• Institution
• Species
• Signalment
• Clinical history
• Gross findings

Page Two should include:

• Histopathologic findings
• Ancillary diagnostic results (if applicable)
• Morphologic diagnosis
• Final diagnosis

Slide Information
Please include the following metadata for the submitted slide:

• Slide identifier
• Species (common name and scientific name)
• Tissue
• Stain
• Morphologic diagnosis
• Etiologic diagnosis (if known)

Depending on the number of submissions received, not all submitted cases may be selected for presentation. Preference may be given to cases with particular educational value, diagnostic challenges, unusual diseases, novel presentations, or relevance to wildlife health and conservation.  Cases that illustrate important wildlife diseases, emerging pathogens, unusual lesion patterns, or diagnostic challenges are especially encouraged.

Presentation Materials
Accepted presenters will be asked to submit their presentation electronically prior to the workshop. Additional instructions will be provided following case selection.

To allow adequate time for discussion of all cases, presentations are limited to 15 minutes followed by 5 minutes of discussion.

Workshop Proceedings
Comprehensive workshop proceedings will be provided to participants and will include case synopses, finalized diagnoses, discussion points, and access to whole-slide images for continued educational use following the workshop.

The workshop emphasizes active learning, diagnostic reasoning, and collegial discussion, making it valuable for both experienced diagnosticians and trainees seeking advanced exposure to wildlife disease pathology.

REGISTRATION COST
Regular (non-students) – $200
Student – $100

CONTACT: mkkeel@ucdavis.edu