About

Sarah Ho is the CVM Director of Student Engagement at the College of Veterinary Medicine at NC State University. Her role involves fostering student success and engagement within the college community. The page emphasizes her position in supporting students' academic and personal growth, but does not provide specific details about her research focus, background, or key contributions.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Biology
• Cell biology
• Pathology
• Cancer research
• Immunology
• Veterinary medicine
• Internal medicine
• Microbiology
• Animal science

Selected publications

• Artificial intelligence-assisted mitotic counts improve efficiency, accuracy, and inter-pathologist agreement: a method toward canine soft tissue sarcoma grade standardization

  Veterinary oncology. · 2025-08-13 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are a morphologically diverse set of tumours arising from the non-visceral soft tissues with variable biologic behavior that is associated with tumour grade. Tumour grade is determined by a combination of 3 parameters measured by a pathologist: Mitotic Count (MC), percentage of necrosis, and degree of differentiation. Of these, MC is the most objective parameter. MC has been targeted by artificial intelligence (AI) models, which have been shown to efficiently obtain a sensitive and highly reproducible mitotic count. To efficiently detect and quantify mitotic figures in canine STS, we developed and validated a deep learning system using convolutional neural networks (OncoPetNet). Validation of the AI model was performed against a data set of 72 individual tumours from 72 dogs (F1 score: 0.86) and 100 STS from the MIDOG++ data set (F1 score: 0.70). The model was evaluated versus manual counts across two studies: study 1 included a single pathologist to mimic the diagnostic situation while controlling for variation among pathologists and study 2 included a group of 9 pathologists to measure inter-pathologist agreement. In both studies, AI-assisted investigation resulted in pathologists observing approximately twice the number of mitotic figures, in approximately half the time of manual counts. Increased MC ultimately resulted in an upward migration of Tumour Grade from Grade 1 to Grade 2 in 15.7% (study 1) to 18% (study 2) of observations and from Grade 2 to 3 in 5.6% (study 1) to 7% (study 2) of observations. With AI-assistance, inter-observer agreement was significantly increased for MC, and MC Scores. AI-assistance also resulted in significant increase in inter-pathologist agreement on Slide Selection. Ultimately, a trend toward increased inter-pathologist agreement in Tumour Grade was also observed; however, this was non-significant indicating variations in other grade parameters like % necrosis and degree of differentiation remain sources of significant inter-pathologist variation. In conclusion, AI-assistance improved efficiency, sensitivity, and inter-pathologist agreement of MC, which is an important step in standardizing STS grading.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Development and Application of Optimized Isolation Methods and Diagnostic PCR Protocols for the Detection of Pathogenic Enterococcus cecorum Isolated from Broiler Chickens

  Avian Diseases · 2025-02-13 · 3 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Desarrollo y aplicación de métodos de aislamiento optimizados y protocolos de PCR de diagnóstico para la detección de Enterococcus cecorum patógeno aislado de pollos de engorde. Enterococcus cecorum (EC) es un comensal entérico dominante en pollos de engorde. Sin embargo, las cepas patógenas de E. cecorum causan un aumento de la morbilidad y la mortalidad por enfermedad septicémica en la producción de pollos de engorde en todo el mundo. Las infecciones por E. cecorum pueden presentarse como pericarditis y lesiones espinales paralizantes de las que se puede aislar E. cecorum patógeno. Sin embargo, la incapacidad de distinguir entre cepas de E. cecorum comensales y patógenas ha dificultado la búsqueda de la fuente de E. cecorum patógeno en muestras ambientales o de plantas de incubación. Este problema se ha agravado por la baja sensibilidad de los métodos estándar de muestreo y cultivo. El análisis genómico comparativo de los aislados de E. cecorum identificó previamente una región de cápsula conservada en cepas de E. cecorum patógenas que está ausente o es variable en las cepas comensales. Basándonos en un gene de síntesis capsular, cpsO e iniciadores sodA específicos de una especie E. cecorum, se diseñó un método de PCR multiplex estándar para distinguir las cepas de E. cecorum patógenas de las cepas comensales. Para permitir un mayor rendimiento de las muestras, se desarrolló un protocolo en tándem de PCR en tiempo real basado en la detección de estos genes. Para aumentar la sensibilidad del cultivo, un protocolo de enriquecimiento selectivo utilizando caldo Todd-Hewitt con 1% de extracto de levadura y cuatro antibióticos permitió el aislamiento de E. cecorum patógenas de los residuos de transferencia de huevos y de los huevos descartados en las incubadoras. Se utilizó la electroforesis en gel de campo de pulsaciones para genotipar los aislamientos de incubación recuperados, que identificaron cepas de E. cecorum patógenas clonales aisladas de residuos de incubación y de una lesión espinal de pollo de engorde. La capacidad de distinguir los E. cecorum patógenos de los comensales junto con métodos de cultivo modificados facilitará una mejor vigilancia de las E. cecorum patógenos durante toda la producción de pollos de engorde, lo que idealmente conducirá a una menor incidencia o erradicación de esta enfermedad.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Ultrasonographic features of a gastric submucosal lipoma in a cat: A case study.

  PubMed · 2024-09-01

  articleOpen access

  A 7-year-old Korean shorthair cat was admitted to our hospital with chronic constipation. Abdominal ultrasonography incidentally revealed a focal asymmetric gastric mass. The mass was submucosal and hypoechoic without loss of wall layering. Histopathological examination revealed a gastric submucosal lipoma (GSL). Although there have been reports of gastric submucosal fat infiltration in cats, there have been no reports regarding GSL. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing the ultrasonographic characteristics of GSL in a cat. Gastric submucosal lipoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis when a focal hypoechoic submucosal mass without loss of wall layering in the stomach is observed on ultrasound images. Key clinical message: This case report describes the ultrasonographic characteristics of GSL in a cat and aims to provide useful information for the diagnosis of lipoma occurring in the feline gastrointestinal tract. The ultrasonographic features and histological results we describe should be helpful in diagnosing submucosal lipoma in cats with similar conditions.

  PublisherOA PDF

• Canine uropathogenic and avian pathogenic Escherichia coli harboring conjugative plasmids exhibit augmented growth and exopolysaccharide production in response to Enterococcus faecalis

  PLoS ONE · 2024-11-27 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) and avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) are extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) that infect dogs and poultry. These agents occur both as single-species infections and, commonly, in co-infection with Enterococcus faecalis (EF); however, it is unclear how EF co-infections modulate ExPEC virulence. Genetic drivers of interspecies interactions affecting virulence were identified using macrocolony co-culture, chicken embryo co-infection experiments, and whole-genome sequence analysis of ExPEC and EF clinical isolates. Ten of 11 UPEC strains originally co-isolated with EF exhibited a growth advantage when co-cultured with EF on iron-limited, semi-solid media in contrast to growing alone (P < 0.01). Phylogenetic analyses of these UPEC and 18 previously screened APEC indicated the growth-response phenotype was conserved in ExPEC despite strain diversity. When genomes of EF-responsive ExPEC were compared to non-responsive ExPEC genomes, EF-induced growth was associated with siderophore, exopolysaccharide (EPS), and plasmid conjugative transfer genes. Two matched pairs of EF-responsive and non-responsive ExPEC were selected for further characterization by macrocolony proximity and chicken embryo lethality assays. EF-responsive ExPEC produced 5 to 16 times more EPS in proximity to EF and were more lethal to embryos alone and during co-infection with EF compared to non-responsive ExPEC (P < 0.05). A responsive APEC strain cured of its conjugative plasmid lost the enhanced growth and EPS production response to EF. These data demonstrate that ExPEC growth augmentation by EF occurs in UPEC and APEC strains and is linked to conjugative virulence plasmids and EPS production, which are widely conserved ExPEC virulence determinants.

  PublisherDOI

• Pharmacokinetics of pradofloxacin, florfenicol, and tulathromycin and response to treatment of steers experimentally infected with <i>Mannheimia hemolytica</i>

  Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine · 2024-12-10 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is an economically important disease in the beef industry, and a major driver of therapeutic antibiotic use. Pharmacokinetic data of these drugs is relatively limited in diseased animals. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVE: To determine the concentrations of pradofloxacin, florfenicol, and tulathromycin in the airways, plasma, and interstitial fluid (ISF) of steers with a clinically relevant model of bacterial respiratory disease. ANIMALS: Twenty-four Holstein and Holstein/Jersey cross steers ranging in age from 6 to 15 months. METHODS: A randomized, blinded clinical trial was performed. After transport stress, steers were inoculated with Mannheimia hemolytica to induce BRD. Upon onset of clinical disease, steers were treated with pradofloxacin, florfenicol or tulathromycin. Blood, ISF, and pulmonary epithelial lining fluid (PELF) samples were obtained for drug concentration determination. Clinical exams and thoracic ultrasound examinations were conducted daily. Animals were euthanized at the end of the study period to assess lung lesions. RESULTS: was 0.9 μg/mL (45.03%) and PELF penetration was 518.97% (56.59%). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: There are differences in penetration of the drugs into the ISF and PELF compared to one another and previous data from healthy steers demonstrating the effect of disease on the PK of these drugs.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Integrated immunohistochemical and DNA copy number profiling analysis provides insight into the molecular pathogenesis of canine follicular lymphoma

  UNC Libraries · 2024-08-27 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Follicular lymphomas (FLs) typically exhibit a chromosome translocation that induces constitutive expression of the anti-apoptotic bcl2 protein and accumulation of additional molecular defects. This rearrangement offers a promising therapeutic target, but its nature as a fundamental driver of FL pathogenesis remains unclear as 15% of cases lack the translocation. We performed an integrated immunohistochemical and genomic investigation of 10 naturally occurring FL cases from domestic dogs, showing that, as with human tumours, they exhibit marked heterogeneity in the frequency and intensity of bcl2 protein expression. Genomic copy number aberrations were infrequent and broadly consistent with those of other canine B-cell lymphoma subtypes. None of the canine FL specimens exhibited a rearrangement consistent with the hallmark translocation of human FL, despite their remarkable histomorphologic similarity. Parallel exploration of canine and human cases may reveal alternative tumour-initiating mechanisms other than BCL2 disruption, yielding a more complete definition of the molecular pathogenesis of FL.

  PublisherDOI

• Supplementary Table 3 from Gene Profiling of Canine B-Cell Lymphoma Reveals Germinal Center and Postgerminal Center Subtypes with Different Survival Times, Modeling Human DLBCL

  2023-03-30

  supplementary-materialsOpen access

  &lt;p&gt;PDF file - 41K, Distribution of lymphoma samples into "Ongoing" or "Static" categories based on the proportion of IGHV subclones that are identical at the CDR3 region for each sample.&lt;/p&gt;

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Data from Comparative Genomics Reveals Shared Mutational Landscape in Canine Hemangiosarcoma and Human Angiosarcoma

  2023-04-03

  preprintOpen access

  &lt;div&gt;Abstract&lt;p&gt;Angiosarcoma is a highly aggressive cancer of blood vessel–forming cells with few effective treatment options and high patient mortality. It is both rare and heterogenous, making large, well-powered genomic studies nearly impossible. Dogs commonly suffer from a similar cancer, called hemangiosarcoma, with breeds like the golden retriever carrying heritable genetic factors that put them at high risk. If the clinical similarity of canine hemangiosarcoma and human angiosarcoma reflects shared genomic etiology, dogs could be a critically needed model for advancing angiosarcoma research. We assessed the genomic landscape of canine hemangiosarcoma via whole-exome sequencing (47 golden retriever hemangiosarcomas) and RNA sequencing (74 hemangiosarcomas from multiple breeds). Somatic coding mutations occurred most frequently in the tumor suppressor &lt;i&gt;TP53&lt;/i&gt; (59.6% of cases) as well as two genes in the PI3K pathway: the oncogene &lt;i&gt;PIK3CA&lt;/i&gt; (29.8%) and its regulatory subunit &lt;i&gt;PIK3R1&lt;/i&gt; (8.5%). The predominant mutational signature was the age-associated deamination of cytosine to thymine. As reported in human angiosarcoma, &lt;i&gt;CDKN2A/B&lt;/i&gt; was recurrently deleted and &lt;i&gt;VEGFA, KDR&lt;/i&gt;, and &lt;i&gt;KIT&lt;/i&gt; recurrently gained. We compared the canine data to human data recently released by The Angiosarcoma Project, and found many of the same genes and pathways significantly enriched for somatic mutations, particularly in breast and visceral angiosarcomas. Canine hemangiosarcoma closely models the genomic landscape of human angiosarcoma of the breast and viscera, and is a powerful tool for investigating the pathogenesis of this devastating disease.&lt;/p&gt;Implications:&lt;p&gt;We characterize the genomic landscape of canine hemangiosarcoma and demonstrate its similarity to human angiosarcoma.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

  PublisherDOI

• Supplementary Table 2 from Gene Profiling of Canine B-Cell Lymphoma Reveals Germinal Center and Postgerminal Center Subtypes with Different Survival Times, Modeling Human DLBCL

  2023-03-30

  supplementary-materialsOpen access

  &lt;p&gt;XLSX file - 40K, Canine genes identified by Ingenuity Pathway Analysis as part of the NF-kB or B-cell receptor signaling pathways (Fig. 5).&lt;/p&gt;

  PublisherDOI

• Supplementary Methods from Comparative Genomics Reveals Shared Mutational Landscape in Canine Hemangiosarcoma and Human Angiosarcoma

  2023-04-03

  preprintOpen access

  &lt;p&gt;Supplementary Methods&lt;/p&gt;

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Matthew Breen

  Cancer Genetics (United States)

  83 shared

• Rachael Thomas

  North Carolina State University

  74 shared

• Alison A. Motsinger‐Reif

  National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

  66 shared

• Steven E. Suter

  North Carolina State University

  64 shared

• Dahlia M. Nielsen

  North Carolina State University

  60 shared

• Charles M. Perou

  UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center

  60 shared

• Yuri Fedoriw

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  60 shared

• George W. Small

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  60 shared

Education

• PhD, Pathobiology

  University of Illinois System

  2009

• DVM

  University of Illinois System

  2005