Comparative medicine can be defined as the integral study of diseases from the molecular to the whole animal level using spontaneous and induced animal models with the aim to develop improved and innovative methods for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of human disease. The Center focuses on cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Center faculty collaborate closely with faculty at the IU School of Medicine. The specific goals are (i) to develop and utilize new animal models of human disease. Current work focuses on the Ossabaw pig as a model of diet-induced cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus and concurrent work focuses on genetically engineered swine models; (ii) to perform comparative analysis of stem cells isolated from rodents, pigs, zebra fish and human umbilical cord blood; (iii) to provide training and research opportunities for graduate students. A laboratory animal medicine graduate training program was established in close association with the existing veterinary pathology graduate training program in the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology.