Dr Nicholas Parkinson (MA MS VetMB PhD CertEM(Int.Med.) DACVIM MRCVS)
Senior Lecturer in Equine Internal Medicine
Address
- Street
-
The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies
Easter Bush Campus
Midlothian - City
- Post code
- EH25 9RG
Background
Nick graduated from Cambridge Veterinary School in 2005. After undertaking in internship in equine studies, he spent 6 years in equine ambulatory practice in Somerset and Hertfordshire, during which time he completed the RCVS Certificate in Equine Internal Medicine. He made the decision to return to academic veterinary medicine in 2013, spending 3 years at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in the USA, doing a Large Animal Medicine residency combined with a Masters degree. He came to Edinburgh in 2016 under the Wellcome Trust-funded Edinburgh Clinical Academic Track scheme for Veterinarians (ECAT-V), and completed a PhD in Genetics and Genomics in 2022.
He has been a board-certified Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Large Animal) since 2016. His clinical interests include all aspects of equine internal medicine, with a particular emphasis on infectious diseases, gastrointestinal conditions and neonatal medicine.
His main research interests are:
- Equine infectious diseases and immunology
- Novel applications of CRISPR/Cas9 screening technology to domestic species
- Comparative genomics with a focus on regulatory mechanisms and host-pathogen interactions
Clinical Expertise and Specialisation
Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Large Animal)
Qualifications
Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (Cambridge), University of Cambridge (2005)
Master of Arts, University of Cambridge (2006)
Certificate in Equine Medicine (Internal Medicine), RCVS (2011)
Master of Science, Virginia Polytechnic and State University (2016) Dissertation: Endotoxin-induced microRNA expression in equine peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Large Animal), DACVIM (2016)
PhD in Genetics and Genomics, University of Edinburgh (2022). Thesis title: Functional genomics in the regulation of the immune system
Responsibilities & affiliations
Clinical Services - Equine Internal Medicine
Affiliations and committee memberships:
R(D)SVS Equine Biobank, academic co-lead
R(D)SVS Veterinary Ethical Review Committee
R(D)SVS Clinical Audit Group
ACVIM Maintenance of Credentials Committee
British Equine Veterinary Association
Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
Undergraduate teaching
Final year rotations (Equine)
NAVLE prep
ABSC (GEP) case-based learning
BVM&S Professional & Clinical Skills - Equine Clinical Examination
BVM&S Year 4 Equine Integrated Clinical Course - Syndrome Classes
BVM&S Year 4 Equine Integrated Clinical Course - Respiratory System
Open to PhD supervision enquiries?
Yes
Current PhD students supervised
PhD: Keyi Tang (Genome-wide CRISPR screening in canine melanoma)
DVet Med: Karen Marshall (Transcriptomics of equine sarcoids)
Past PhD students supervised
Abby Ward (Honours project): BPV viral load and inflammatory gene expression in equine sarcoids
Research summary
Current and recent research projects include:
- Investigations into the molecular basis of varying tumour phenotype in BPV-associated equine sarcoids
- Genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 screening for molecular vulnerabilities in feline oral squamous cell carcinoma (funded by Morris Animal Foundation)
- Genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 screening for molecular vulnerabilities in canine oral melanoma (funded by the American Kennel Club)
- Design of novel genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 knockout libraries for horses, dogs, cats, pigs, chickens, ducks and sheep
- Use of CRISPR-Cas9 knockout and activation screening to identify host dependency factors for avian and porcine influenza (collaboration with Finn Grey, Roslin Institute)
- Identification of eQTLs associated with production traits in pig muscle (collaboration with Gregor Gorjanc, Roslin Institute)
- Meta-analyses of genomic data from diverse sources to prioritise genes implicated in critical illness syndromes (collaboration with Kenny Baillie group, Roslin Institute / Pandemic Science Hub)
- Characterisation of Mycobacterium Avium subsp. Paratuberculosis as an emerging pathogen of equids