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Research

CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE, COMPETENCE CENTER AND UNIVERSITY SCIENCE PARK

  1. Centre of Excellence for Animal Diseases and Zoonoses – INFEKTZOON (ITMS Project Code 26220120002)
  2. Centre of Excellence for Biomedical Technologies in partnership with  Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice (ITMS Project Code: 26220120066)
  3. Centre of Excellence for Parasitology in partnership with the Institute of Parasitology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Košice (ITMS Project Code: 26220120022)
  4. Competence Centre for Biomodulators and Nutritional Supplements (Probiotech) in partnership with the Institute of Animal Physiology in Košice (ITMS Project Code: 26220220152)
  5. Medical University Science Park in Košice (MediPark Košice) partnership with   Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice (ITMS Project Code: 26220220185)

The centres of excellence are significantly involved in the scientific and research activities of the university, publishing activities and cooperation between the university’s workplaces and the workplaces of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS).

The INFEKTZOON Research Excellence Centre is the only CE at UVMP and has the ambition to be a leading scientific institution in the Eastern Slovakia region and Slovakia in the fight against zoonoses and infectious diseases of animals and humans according to the current needs of the epizootological-epidemiological situation in the state, the Central European region and the EU.

The INFEKTZOON workplace consists of five sections, in which work a wide scientific team consists of the scientific capacities of UVMP in Košice and of the Institute of Parasitology of SAS as a partner organization. The workplace is equipped with special unique equipment obtained thanks to financial support from the EU Structural Funds and the State Budget of the SR from the Operational Programme Research and Development.

The INFEKTZOON’s research team studies viral and bacterial animal diseases and the beneficial bacteria - probiotic preparations that are used to combat infectious diseases. One part of the team focuses on epizootic analysis of viral infections in livestock and wildlife animals by using molecular epidemiology methods, diagnostics of infectious diseases using the latest molecular-genetic methods, identification of microorganisms, viral genome analysis, genetic typing of viruses. The other part of the team focuses on the study and use of Lactobacilli and the development of preventive preparations - probiotics to combat infectious animal diseases. The top team LACTOVIR (Lactobacilli and Viruses in Veterinary Medicine) studies infectious agents as pestivirus, PRRSV, PCV2, enteral infections that infect cattle, pigs, sheep, wild boars and humans.

The Medical University Science Park in Košice (MediPark Košice) is a result of collaboration between UVMP (project partner) and Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice (lead partner). The core research programme of MediPark is focused on applied research in the field of zoonoses and significant infectious diseases, development and application of diagnostic procedures for significant bacterial and viral infectious diseases of humans and animals, particularly zoonoses (borrelia, tick-borne encephalitis virus, West Nile virus, etc.), on the basis of genome detection of microorganisms or antigens using molecular biology methods. In addition, genetics methods are used for epidemiological and epizootiological analyses. Attention is paid to study of gene expression in infected cells, identification and characterization of epitopes and paratopes, and study of interactions of probiotic microorganisms and their products with the components of immune system under in vitro and in vivo conditions for novel possibilities of immunomodulation.