Rate My Professor Jody Gookin

Jody Gookin is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences at North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, advancing Agricultural and Veterinary Science through her internationally recognized expertise in clinical, basic, and translational gastroenterology. She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of California at Davis and a PhD in Gastrointestinal Physiology from North Carolina State University. Following completion of the Small Animal Internal Medicine Clinician Scientist training program at North Carolina State University, she became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. Dr. Gookin currently holds appointments as Chancellor’s University Faculty Scholar and FluoroScience Distinguished Professor in Veterinary Scholars Research Education, named in 2016. She and her colleagues identified Tritrichomonas foetus as a previously unrecognized global cause of diarrhea in domestic cats, dedicating over 20 years to research on its pathogenicity, diagnostic methods, worldwide significance, and effective treatment. Directing the Tritrichomonas Diagnostic Laboratory, she has authored over 27 original research publications on the topic, including highly cited works such as “Prevalence of and Risk Factors for Feline Tritrichomonas foetus and Giardia Infection” (Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 2004), “Diarrhea associated with trichomonosis in cats” (Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 1999), and “Single-Tube Nested PCR for Detection of Tritrichomonas foetus in Feline Feces” (Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 2002).

Dr. Gookin’s research interests include intestinal and gallbladder epithelium host defense, minimally-invasive pathogens of relevance to humans and animals such as Cryptosporidium parvum, enteropathogenic E. coli, and Tritrichomonas foetus/blagburni, as well as pathogenesis of gallbladder mucocele formation in dogs. Key publications encompass “Restoration of barrier function in injured intestinal mucosa” (Physiological Reviews, 2007), “Acquired dysfunction of CFTR underlies cystic fibrosis-like disease of the canine gallbladder” (American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, 2024), and “Increased lipogenesis and lipidosis of gallbladder epithelium in dogs with gallbladder mucocele formation” (PLOS ONE, 2024). Her clinical interests center on small animal gastroenterology, emphasizing feline gastroenterology and canine biliary disease. She co-directs the NCSU Veterinary Scholars Program, serves on the Executive Committee of the NIH/NCSU T35 Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Training Program, and is training faculty for the NIH/NCSU T32 Comparative Medicine and Translational Research Training Program. Dr. Gookin’s contributions to feline medicine have been recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Foundation and Winn Feline Foundation.