BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 25, 2005 – Raymond J. Geor of Middleburg, Va., Virginia Tech professor of animal and poultry sciences, has been appointed to the Paul Mellon Distinguished Chair of Agriculture in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The position is based at the Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension (MARE) Center in Middleburg.
Paul Mellon, a former member of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors and founder of The Old Dominion Foundation, established the Paul Mellon Distinguished Professorship in 1988.
“We are very pleased and fortunate to have Dr. Geor move into this position. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience in equine nutrition, internal medicine, and exercise science,” said Sharron Quisenberry, dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “His research and teaching experience will help enrich the training of our students and strengthen ties to the Virginia equine industry.”
Geor succeeds David Kronfeld, professor of animal and poultry sciences, who served as the Mellon Professor for the past 17 years.
“Dr. David Kronfeld and his graduate students have been incredibly productive over the past 17 years, setting the MARE Center and Virginia Tech at the forefront of equine nutritional science,” noted Geor. “Clearly, the vision of Mr. Paul Mellon in developing the center’s missions and investing in its development has been crucial to its success. I am committed to this vision and to the furthering of the center’s reputation for excellence in developing new knowledge that enhances the health, productivity, and welfare of horses.”
Geor’s research focuses on equine nutrition and exercise science with an emphasis on nutritional effects on muscle function and athletic performance and the links between diet and disease and the mitigation of such risks via dietary intervention. His current research focus is on regulation of carbohydrate metabolism in equids, specifically the mechanisms underlying changes in insulin sensitivity in different nutritional and physiologic states; the interactions between obesity, inflammation, and insulin resistance; characterization of factors affecting glycogen synthesis in skeletal muscle; and the time course and extent of intestinal adaptations in response to altered dietary composition.
Prior to his current appointment, Geor served as an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences in the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph. He is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, received his Ph.D. from Ohio State University, a master’s degree from the University of Saskatchewan, and a BVMS degree from Massey University in New Zealand.
He has published four books, 21 book chapters, and more than 68 peer-reviewed journal papers and presentations. He is an associate editor for the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, a member of the board for scientific reviewers for the American Journal of Veterinary Research, and is on the editorial board for the Journal of Equine and Comparative Exercise Physiology. Geor has taught several classes in internal medicine, equine neonatology, ruminant medicine, and horse nutrition over the past 16 years and has advised more than 50 undergraduate and graduate students.
The Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension Center is a 420-acre farm with research focused on equine nutrition. The late Paul Mellon donated the land and a supporting grant to Virginia Tech in 1949. The center was used mainly for beef cattle research for 40 years but, with further assistance from Mellon, it was re-dedicated to equine research in 1992. The breeding stock is all registered Thoroughbreds donated by many supporters. The center is currently home to three stallions, more than 40 broodmares and 50 to 60 yearlings, foals, and mature geldings. Research objectives are to develop pastures and pasture supplements that improve the reproductive efficiency of mares and that provide the most effective growth of foals and yearlings.
Ranked 11th in agricultural research expenditures by the National Science Foundation, Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences offers students the opportunity to learn from some of the world’s leading agricultural scientists. The college’s comprehensive curriculum gives students a balanced education that ranges from food and fiber production to economics to human health. The college is a national leader in incorporating technology, biotechnology, computer applications, and other recent scientific advances into its teaching program.