Born and raised in Cairo, Egypt, Dr. Mohammad El-Gazzar grew up watching his parents invest their lives in agricultural crop research. Despite their positive influence in many ways, El-Gazzar had no desire to follow in their footsteps. He enjoyed learning about biology, which created an interest in becoming a physician. However, the competitive nature of medical school admissions in Egypt led him to enroll in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cairo University, Egypt.
In the second of his five-year program, an introductory poultry husbandry class piqued his interest. He was fascinated by the structure and efficiency of the poultry industry. Growing up in a developing country, where animal protein was difficult to obtain yet deeply valued, he became captivated by the industry. “When I look at the poultry industry, I’m like, wow,” said El-Gazzar. “There is such a potential to solve a lot of problems and feed a lot of hungry people.”
Upon graduation, he took on a role with the largest poultry company in Egypt, Cairo Poultry. He worked as a service veterinarian, traveling across the country and helping clients. El-Gazzar gained an immense amount of experience in the industry. After six years of working with broiler breeders he started a new position with Ceva, doing vaccine and clinical consulting.
During his career, El-Gazzar was always looking to further his education through clinical education. With encouragement from his long-time professor, he applied to the University of Georgia. With only two coveted spots available, he received encouraging feedback but was not accepted into the program. Armed with a positive mindset, El-Gazzar persevered and applied three more times before being accepted. His persistence helped form a new interview question at the University, “How many times are you willing to apply?”
His two-year residency finished in December 2009, and after completing the board exam, El-Gazzar gained the title of College of Poultry Veterinarians Diplomate. While eager to get back into clinical practice, he could not find the job he sought. The opportunity to start his Ph.D. at The Ohio State University (OSU) arose. He was hesitant to step into research, but he later concluded, “I loved it; it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life.”
Working under Dr. Ziv Raviv, OSU’s extension veterinarian, El-Gazzar studied molecular diagnostics and liked the clinical practice from a different viewpoint – the laboratory side of the clinic. He became extension faculty at OSU in 2014. When Iowa State University’s diagnostic lab posted its poultry position, El-Gazzar leaped at the opportunity to put his clinical skills to work in his area of expertise.
Since 2018, El-Gazzar has been at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University (ISU), studying disease, prevention and eradication. El-Gazzar enjoys his work at ISU because he can directly impact industry needs. He spends a little over half his time focusing on the egg industry and the other on the turkey industry. El-Gazzar states that his field of work takes a building up of momentum, finding the right graduate and post-doc students that not only understand what they are trying to do but also share the same passion. El-Gazzar is most proud of helping develop these students. He does this through mentoring which eventually increases the bandwidth of researchers passionate about the poultry industry.
El-Gazzar has published multiple impactful research essays. Avi bacterium paragallinarum has been one of his favorite projects and one of his most challenging. “Research is challenging,” said El-Gazzar. However, he believes it is important to establish a format you are passionate about and continue to grow interest and passion for your work. One piece of advice El-Gazzar has for upcoming researchers is to ask questions before chasing something that is not applicable. “Don’t waste time, thought, and resources on something that is not relevant or progressing the industry and one's own motives.” He also recommended that young researchers develop a mission statement and work daily to fulfill that mission.
With the current disease pressures impacting the animal agriculture industry, El-Gazzar reminds everyone that they should not give up on eradicating new diseases. “Trust the process and do your part to help protect the animals and people of this country.”
By Naomi Scott
