PARTNERS
Estonian University of Life Sciences
The Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMU) is a strong regional player in the field of One Health in Estonia and the Baltic region but aims to become excellent and one of the prominent centers for research on One Health in the EU and worldwide. EMU has the ambition, critical mass, expertise, and experience to undergo this transition and become an excellent entity in the One Health area of research.
The core unit in the project is EMU’s Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences. It has considerable expertise in animal nutrition and production, animal genetics and breeding, reproductive biology, biotechnology, animal health, infectious and invasive diseases, therapy, food safety, and food technology. Research conducted at the working groups of the Institute involves almost all aspects of the “from farm to fork” production and processing chain of animal products. The goal is to develop the practice of veterinary medicine and related services to ensure the well-being of both humans and animals and to apply knowledge learned in both fields. The Institute has been developing its One Health-related competencies in a fragmented manner through its various departments, ranging from clinical veterinary medicine to animal genetics and reproductive biology. However, one of the immediate priorities of EMU is to connect these separate efforts to truly kick-start excellent interdisciplinary research in the field. The successful application for H2020 supported ERA Chair project in the field of comparative medicine, which started in 2019, has given the One Health concept solid ground and structure within EMU by integrating all the related research done so far and bringing it to the next level by adding the comparative the perspective between human and veterinary medicine.
The University of Tartu is Estonia’s leading center of research and training as well as has strong human medicine expertise - it has in its structure the only academic hospital in Estonia, the Tartu University Hospital. In the project, it is represented by the Department of Microbiology which belongs to the Faculty of Medicine. It is the only institution in Estonia that offers all-level education in medical microbiology and virology and is involved in several research projects in this area. The department teaches MA/Ph.D. students in medical microbiology, virology, and infectious diseases and provides continuous medical education for practicing physicians in medical microbiology and virology. It has relevant expertise in the development and implementation of new technologies in microbiology and virology and in knowledge transfer from lab to clinic. The department also cooperates with hospitals and various international research organizations in conducting high-level research in medical microbiology and virology and educates the general public in the field of prevention of infectious diseases. The main aim of the department is research-based teaching at all levels of medical education. Department of Microbiology has close connections with other departments of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Tartu, with several clinics of Tartu University Hospital, and with other Estonian hospitals.
The University of Helsinki (UH) is a leading One Health RD&I institution conducting advanced research. To integrate R&D on One Health carried out in different faculties of UH – Veterinary Medicine, Medicine, Pharmacy, Agriculture and Forestry, and Social Sciences, the University created an integrated Helsinki One Health (HOH) research platform in 2018. The core aim of HOH is to expand and share scientific knowledge on how human, animal, and environmental health form a tightly interconnected system, with a focus on finding holistic, multidisciplinary solutions for major health-related global challenges. HOH is dealing with a multitude of topics such as combating antimicrobial resistance, ways of assessing and managing risks in food control systems, the link between genetic background and disposition to disease as well as detecting, controlling, and reducing emerging infections. The University of Helsinki is a member of the Una Europa Network, an alliance that involves high-impact One Health initiatives and transdisciplinary research that is intertwined with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The University of Milan is represented by VESPA “Carlo Cantoni” Department. This unit gathers professors and researchers belonging to 10 scientific disciplinary sectors. The main fields of scientific interest of the department include veterinary anatomy and morphology; monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment of animal diseases; animal nutrition and feed techniques; the development of drugs of veterinary interest and the study of their dynamic, the study and control of the quality and safety of food of animal origin, agricultural economics, and food marketing. The University of Milan has distinct expertise in translational and regenerative medicine, new technologies in feeding (reduce, reuse, revalorize), food origin and nutrition security, clinical and pharmaceutical advanced methods for veterinary medicine, and future farming. On top of these research skills, it has distinct expertise in reducing the use of animals in research thanks to highly predictive 3D models and in the implementation of computing infrastructure consisting of smart devices and sensors (incl. developing 5G communication networks and cloud computing architectures). The University has also built up good cooperation with businesses, validating new system concepts through business cases developed with industrial partners. Regarding outreach, University has experience with creating living labs capable of increasing awareness and sharing actions to safeguard animal and human health, longevity, and sustainability. The lab operates in a real-life context with a user-centric approach. The University of Milan has good mass media and social media relations and regularly organizes open days, science cafes, and science festivals.