New faculty member Go Togawa embraces challenges of veterinary neurology research

Go Togawa said his journey to North America was driven by a desire to pursue veterinary specialties, which are more prevalent here than in his home country of Japan.

This fall, Togawa joins the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine as an assistant professor of neurology and neurosurgery in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences. His research interests span spinal cord injury and epilepsy in dogs and cats.

Prior to joining Virginia Tech, Togawa completed a three-year residency in neurology and neurosurgery at Purdue University in Indiana. He also held internships at the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Guelph in Canada, gaining valuable experience along the way.

Togawa said he is eager to collaborate with three accomplished veterinary neurologists — John Rossmeisl, Richard Shinn, and Rell Parker — and was attracted by Virginia Tech’s outstanding research environment and the numerous opportunities for advancing veterinary medicine, as well as quality of life in the region.

“Hiking with my dog is one of my favorite pastimes,” he said. “This region is ideal for that, and it’s one of the reasons I felt Virginia Tech would be a great fit.”

Togawa’s clinical background is central to his approach to research, as he aims to bridge the gap between patient care and scientific inquiry.

“My goal is not only to train residents and treat patients but also to identify clinical problems that need further investigation,” he said. “I want to address those gaps in our knowledge through research.”

Togawa earned his DVM in 2015 and his Ph.D. in 2019 from a university in Japan. He later completed a master’s degree combined with his residency training at Purdue University and recently became board-certified in veterinary neurology by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.  

Veterinary neurology, much like its human counterpart, presents many unanswered questions.

“There are several neurological conditions where the underlying causes are still unknown,” Togawa explained. “We often rely on symptomatic treatment because we don’t fully understand these diseases. This mirrors the challenges seen in human medicine. It’s these uncertainties — why these diseases occur and how to best treat them — that make this field both challenging and fascinating.”