Education

Memphis State University, Memphis, TN BS 05/1992 (Vertebrate Zoology)
Iowa State College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA DVM 05/1996 (Veterinary Science)
University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN Resident 06/2006 (Laboratory Animal Residency)

Position and Appointments

2021 - current   Attending Veterinarian, UWM, Milwaukee, WI
2014 - 2021      Animal Research Liaison, Medical College of Wisconsin, Wauwatosa, WI
2010 - 2013     Consulting Veterinarian, Physiogenix, Waukesha, WI

Personal Statement

After receiving my DVM degree from Iowa State University, I spent a few years practicing small animal medicine; however, my interest in research led me to a residency in laboratory animal medicine. Ensuring that research animals are happy and healthy is imperative for scientific rigor and reproducibility. Although the majority of my career revolves around reduction, refinement, and replacement principles, I have also contributed directly to scientific discoveries in my own right. During my residency, I contributed to gene therapy discoveries by serving a key role in the development of a mouse model for gene therapy using retroviral vectors. I also provided key surgical support in a primate adenoviral vector study for the treatment of defects in human clotting factor IX. More recently in my career, I received training in laser doppler techniques. From that point on, my direct contributions to science have been devoted to the study of cerebral blood flow. The data collected from one of my studies was developed into a computer model thus addressing the reduction of animals in research. I currently spend a good portion of my career training study staff and investigators on proper biomedical techniques as demonstrated through a Jove article and video published on the use of laser doppler and microvascular techniques. I am currently the Attending Veterinarian at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee.

Selected Publications

Allen LA, Terashvili M, Gifford A, Lombard JH. Evaluation of Cerebral Blood Flow Autoregulation in the Rat Using Laser Doppler Flowmetry. J Vis Exp. 2020 Jan 19; PubMed PMID: 32009652.

Allen LA, Schmidt JR, Thompson CT, Carlson BE, Beard DA, Lombard JH. High salt diet impairs cerebral blood flow regulation via salt-induced angiotensin II suppression. Microcirculation. 2019 Apr;26(3):e12518. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6465152.