Job shadowing at the University of Milan on Management of Core Facilities

On 11-14 November 2024, Külli Must and Andres Olt from the Veterinary Institute of the Estonian University of Life Sciences embarked on a five-day job-shadowing visit to the University of Milan. This experience focused on the "Management of Core Facilities" and provided invaluable insights into laboratory administration and interdisciplinary collaboration.

During the visit, participants explored a variety of specialized laboratories, veterinary hospitals, and research facilities at the Lodi campus and beyond. The visit provided valuable insights into the daily operations and research activities across diverse fields, including animal health and nutrition, food safety, and veterinary medicine.

Key activities included:

• A tour of the Laboratory of Inspection of Food of Animal Origin, where research on antibiotic residues, contaminants, and food quality was discussed. Visitors also interacted with Profs. Chiesa and Panseri.

• A visit to the Veterinary Hospital, home to small and productive animal clinics, including a state-of-the-art operating theater with an observation platform, provides a unique view of surgeries.

• Exploration of the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases of Animals (MiLab), which focused on mastitis research and utilizing MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry to identify bacterial causes. 

• Visit to Veterinary Hospital's laboratory, which features a large general lab with hematology and biochemistry analyzers, student workshops, and separate molecular analysis and microbiology labs on the second floor. 

• A tour of the Parasitology Laboratory (ParVetLab) and learning about its collaboration with the veterinary clinic and ongoing research on parasitology, including testing methods like FLOTAC and Mini-FLOTAC, and key topics such as human echinococcosis, heartworms, toxoplasmosis, and new diagnostics for dermatomycoses. They also visited the hospital's clinical skills laboratory, where veterinary students practice hands-on procedures. 

• In Milan, participants visited the Livestock Nutrition Laboratory, discovering the research on animal husbandry and feed analysis. The laboratory, well-equipped for in vitro digestibility trials and gas production studies, is preparing to install the advanced Dual-Flow system for enhanced research. 

• A closer look at the Experimental Farm "Cascina Baciocca", where feeding experiments are conducted with pigs, dairy goats, and cows, including in vivo digestibility trials. The farm is equipped with fistulated cows for rumen fluid collection, respiration chambers for metabolic studies, and facilities for ensiling and agronomic field trials. 

• A visit to the Laboratory Animal Nutrition and Feeding (ANF) at Lodi campus, learning about feed analysis used in research. Participants also toured the experimental farm, which conducts feeding trials for cattle, pigs, and poultry, and is expanding with new buildings for feed production and food science studies. 

• A visit to the Laboratory of Biomedical Embryology and Tissue Engineering in Milan - a tour of the facilities, including a cell engineering lab for creating artificial organs and decellularizing tissues. Participants also visited a cell culture lab for fish feed research using artificial digestion, where a membrane mimics the intestinal epithelium. 

Learning Outcomes

The visit provided an excellent opportunity to learn about the daily work and administration of laboratories at another university. The experiences gained are very broadening and provide food for thought for organizing our work.

Some general observations – on the campus of the Veterinary Medicine Faculty, there is no joint laboratory or general laboratory uniting all laboratory activities. Each department has a laboratory unit to suit its needs. The most of the visited laboratories serve the research projects of the department and the analytical works are coordinated by the working group itself. People working in a lab are often also researchers and participants in research projects.

The job-shadowing program aligns with the OH-Boost project’s mission to foster innovation and collaboration in One Health research. By exchanging best practices, participants like Külli and Andres can bring back valuable insights to enhance their own institutions' research and management capacities.

Special thanks to Prof. Tiziana Brevini, Prof. Fulvio Gandolfi, Prof. Georgia Pennarossa, Dr. N. Casanova, Dr. Mariani, and the various teams at the University of Milan for their support and hospitality during this enriching experience.