Two WSLH-connected pilot projects were among five announced by the UW-Madison Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR) on August 3rd.

The ICTR Pilot Awards Program funds innovative projects that help move clinical discoveries into practice while advancing investigators’ careers. In addition to supporting experienced researchers, the program supports early career investigators as well as researchers who are new to clinical and translational research as they establish and advance their research careers.

The WSLH projects are:

 

Impact of GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Therapy on Alcohol Pharmacokinetics

Contact PI: Heather Barkholtz, School of Pharmacy and WSLH Forensic Toxicology

Co-PI: Michael Chen, SMPH-Family Medicine & Community Health

Funded by ICTR

GLP-1 medications may alter alcohol absorption, but data are limited. This knowledge gap impacts clinical guidance, patient safety, and forensic interpretation of alcohol testing results. This study will characterize how individuals with obesity, receiving maintenance-dose of GLP-1, process alcohol over time and explore links to intoxication and impairment outcomes. The work will take place at UW’s Clinical Research Unit.

 

Improving Blastomyces Diagnosis and Treatment: A Pilot Study

Contact PI: Alana Sterkel, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene

Co-PI: Alexandra Linz, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute

Funded by ICTR

Blastomycosis remains a severe and frequently misdiagnosed fungal infection across Wisconsin, where delayed diagnosis contributes to avoidable death or lasting health problems. This pilot leverages an established partnership between UW–Madison (including the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene) and the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute to address the roadblocks that currently limit clinical adoption of improved Blastomyces diagnostics.

The Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) has appreciated the opportunity to provide Cryptosporidium and Giardia standards to the water testing community over the years. Effective July 2026, the WSLH will no longer produce or distribute Cryptosporidium and Giardia standards.

However, to ensure the continued availability of these materials, a new partnership has been established between Waterborne, Inc. and the University of Wisconsin Flow Cytometry Laboratory. Together, they will provide Cryptosporidium and Giardia standards to support the ongoing needs of the water testing community.

Under this new arrangement, Waterborne, Inc. will manage all customer service, quotations, ordering, and distribution. The University of Wisconsin Flow Cytometry Laboratory will manufacture the standards.

Waterborne, Inc. is now the sole point of contact for all inquiries and orders. Please direct all future questions, quote requests, and purchase orders to Waterborne, Inc.

 

How to Place an Order

 

Waterborne, Inc.

• Website: https://waterborneinc.com/
• Email: support@waterborneinc.com
• Phone: 504-895-3338

UW Flow Website Link:  https://cancer.wisc.edu/research/resources/flow/

 

The WSLH greatly appreciates your support over the years and is confident that this transition will continue to provide laboratories with reliable access to high-quality Cryptosporidium and Giardia standards.

 

 

 

Please note the following changes to the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene’s operations for the July 4th holiday.

As always, if you have an off-hours emergency, please call the WSLH Emergency Pager at 608-263-3280.

 

Please note the following changes to the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene’s operations due to the observance of the Memorial Day holiday.

The table below lists the hours of operations for our Clinical Specimen Receiving departments.

As always, if you have an off-hours emergency, please call the WSLH Emergency Pager at 608-263-3280.

 

The top 3 stories in the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) 2025 annual report have a Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene connection –

APHL Internship Pool Offers Summer Relief to Wisconsin

Laboratory Scientists Help Revive Nationwide Radiochemistry Workforce (One chemist in WSLH’s Radiochemistry Laboratory completed the program and another is currently enrolled.)

CaliciNet Outbreak Support Centers Provide a Laboratory Safety Net (WSLH Communicable Disease Division is 1 of 4 outbreak support centers in the country)

APHL is the national association representing state and local laboratories in the United States that serve the public’s health by monitoring and detecting health threats to protect Americans.

WSLH Chemical Emergency Response (CER) Laboratory Director Meshel Lange received the HazMatter of the Year Award at the Wisconsin Association of Hazardous Materials Responders (WAHMR) conference in early March.

The HazMatter of the Year award acknowledges a person’s service and/or dedication to the improvement of the hazardous materials response community.

Lange was one of 10 nominees for this year’s award and her primary nomination was submitted by WSLH CER’s FBI response partners –

In addition to working with Wisconsin’s HazMat teams on emergency response, Lange and her WSLH CER colleague Mason Shields provide many hours of annual training to HazMat teams across the state as part of their Laboratory Response Network-Chemical (LRN-C) outreach efforts, for which they are nationally known.

 

Nathan Simon, PhD, lead microbiologist in the WSLH Communicable Disease Division Mycobacteriology section, received the 2025 Ed Desmond TB Laboratorian Award from the National Tuberculosis Coalition of America (NTCA). He received his award at the National Conference on Laboratory Aspects of Tuberculosis in Atlanta on March 11^th.

The Ed Desmond TB Laboratorian Award honors exemplary service, dedication, or leadership by a tuberculosis laboratory professional. Simon is the third WSLH scientist to receive the annual award. Previous WSLH winners were Julie Tans-Kersten in 2013 and Dr. Dave Warshauer in 2014.

Simon, who has been Wisconsin TB Lab Program Coordinator since 2021, was nominated for the award by Wisconsin Department of Health Services Tuberculosis Program colleagues for both his scientific and education/outreach excellence.

 

The Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will be holding Environmental Science Day on February 26, 2026.

 

REGISTER to receive streaming link

After you register, you will receive an email from Microsoft Teams with the streaming link to watch online. (NOTE: In-person spots are full.)

For more information on the event, please contact Jake Balczewski (WSLH) or Becca Fahney (DNR)

 

Tentative Agenda (as of 02/23/26 – agenda subject to change)

Please note the following changes to the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene’s operations due to the observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday.

The table below lists the hours of operations for our Clinical Specimen Receiving departments.

As always, if you have an off-hours emergency, please call the WSLH Emergency Pager at 608-263-3280.

 

The WSLH partnered with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Wisconsin Department of Health Services, and UW-Madison Division of Extension to create Be Well Informed, a new online tool designed to help private well owners better understand their drinking water lab results.

From the DNR news release –

“The tool is tailored to Wisconsin’s drinking water environment and includes current water guidelines and standards. Resources are also available to help private well owners make informed decisions about the results. …

“A well owner can simply enter the test results provided by a certified laboratory, and the tool generates a report that explains the results and provides educational resources for any recommended next steps.”

More information is available for well owners on the DNR’s Private Well Owners webpage.