IX Międzynarodowa Konferencja Parazytologiczna

Speakers

prof. Edoardo Pozio

Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Roma , Italy

Prof. Edoardo Pozio is an expert in parasitology and food-borne parasites. Since 1982, he has been employed at the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS) in Rome, Italy, where he held the position of Director of Research from 1991 to 2018. Dr Pozio has made significant contributions to the field of veterinary medicine as, among others, Foodborne Parasite Expert of the Food and Agriculture Organisation from 2012 to 2018, Manager of the European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites of the European Commission from 2006 to 2018, Trichinella Expert for the European Food Safety Agency from 2004 to 2018, European Commission Trichinella Expert from 1992 to 2018, Manager of the Reference Laboratory for Trichinella of the World Organisation for Animal Health from 1992 to 2018, Manager of the International Trichinella Reference Centre of the International Commission for Trichinosis from 1988 to 2018.

His main scientific interests include, but are not limited to: research on trichinellosis and nematodes of the genus Trichinella (i.e. taxonomy, epidemiology, host spectrum, geographical range, interspecies and intraspecies population structure), research on tapeworms of the genus Echinococcus and echinococcosis, Cryptosoridium spp. and cryptosporidiosis, Giardia spp. and giardiasis, Leishmania infantum and leishmaniasis.

Author or co-author of more than 430 articles in peer-reviewed international journals (Hirsh index 54), author of many books and monographs. Speaker at international and national congresses, conferences and workshops.

dr. Peter Thompson

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Beltsville, MD, USA

Dr. Thompson is an evolutionary biologist in the Agricultural Research Service at the USDA who uses genomics to investigate the epidemiology, host interactions, and systematics of parasites relevant to agriculture. He has pioneered novel techniques to investigate the connections between parasites in local outbreaks. He has used DNA sequencing to identify new species of parasites in natural systems. He has led the assembly of multiple genomes from zoonotic parasites to gastrointestinal parasites of cattle, sheep, and goats. He has developed diagnostic assays for mixed infections in agricultural livestock. He is currently focused on transcriptional regulation in parasites exposed to anthelminthics and expanding the genomic toolbox available for investigating the movement of parasites among distinct agricultural host populations.

dr. Gianluca Marucci

Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Roma , Italy

Scientist at the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità of Rome, Italy. Responsible for the molecular section of the European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites and in charge for the organization of proficiency testing.  Multi-year experience in the field of parasitology and molecular biology. Involved in molecular epidemiology studies on helminthic parasites belonging to Trichinella genera and in research activity on the protozoa Giardia duodenalis. Author and co-author of many scientific publications. Currently executive member of the International Commission on Trichinellosis.

prof. Francesco Chiesa

Università degli Studi di Torino, Turin, Italy

Prof. Francesco Chiesa obtained his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine (DVM) from the Università degli Studi di Torino in 2005. He then pursued an International Research Doctorate in 2010, focusing on “Inspective and Sanitary Concerns in Animal Production in Exchanges between the European Union and the People’s Republic of China” from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pisa and the College of Animal Science and Technology at Guangxi University, China.

Since December 2020, Prof. Chiesa has been serving as an Associate Professor at the Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Turin, and the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo-CN.

His primary research interests lie in Veterinary Public Health, with a specific focus on molecular diagnostic tools and genomics of foodborne and waterborne pathogens. Additionally, he has expertise in Food Safety Management Systems, foodborne parasites, and the application of High Throughput Sequencing (HTS) techniques in food safety.

Prof. Chiesa also contributes to the field as a European System of Evaluation of Veterinary Training (ESEVT) Visiting Expert, specializing in Food Safety and Quality.

His contributions to research can be found under the Scopus Author ID: 23396203300.

dr. Sasa Vasilev

University of Belgrade. Institute for the Application of Nuclear Energy – INEP, Serbia

Head of the INEP Veterinary Sector, Head of the National Reference Laboratory for the detection of Trichinella in the meat of domestic and wild animals, President of the Ethics Commission for the Protection of the Welfare of Experimental animals.  Research in Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, Zoonoses and Epidemiology. Main area of research: Influence of Trichinella spiralis and the excretory secretory antigen from this parasite on the modulation of the immune response and on the course of autoimmune and malignant diseases, as well as the potential possibility of using Trichinella spiralis parasite antigens for therapeutic purposes. Through his work in the National Reference Laboratory for the detection of Trichinella in the meat of domestic and wild animals, he monitors the situation in Serbia regarding animal and human infection, and collaborates with colleagues from other institutions in the country and abroad. Participant in Serbian and European scientific projects

dr. Lisa Guardone

University of Pisa,
Italy

Lisa graduated in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pisa in 2009, with a thesis on the epidemiology of foxes’ helminths in North-West Italy. She subsequently completed her PhD at the University of Pisa, in close collaboration with the Institute of Parasitology of the University of Zurich, were Lisa spent several research periods, studying the epidemiology and diagnosis of endoparasites in wild and domestic canids. In 2015, her PhD thesis was awarded by the Italian Society of Parasitology. Since 2013 she has been working across the sectors of Parasitology and of Food Safety and Hygiene, aiming at an interdisciplinary, public health perspective. In 2022 she became a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Public Health (ECVPH), subspecialty Food Science. She worked as an official veterinarian for the Veterinary Medical Research Institute for Piedmont, Liguria and the Aosta Valley from 2021 to 2024 and she is currently Senior researcher at Pisa University. She has participated to several international and national congresses and she has published over 60 peer-reviewed publications.

dr. Martin Richter

Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung – BfR, Berlin, Germany

PharmD, PhD Martin Richter is a Scientific Director and Head of Unit “Diagnostics and Pathogen Characterisation” at the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) since 2018, in Berlin, Germany. The unit comprises consulting laboratories for Leptospira, Yersinia, Vibrio and National Reference Laboratory for Trichinella. He is medical advisor and containment project expert consultant for the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston (USA) since 2010. Where he is responsible for training on government advisory, public health, epidemiology and infectious diseases. Furthermore, he is involved in vaccine and drug development for neglected diseases. Dr Martin is a permanent Member of the Committee for Biological Agents in Germany (ABAS) of the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS) since 2011, where he  deales with development of technical rules in usage and handling of biological agents in the workspace (bio-security, bio-safety measures, training requirements for work in BSL2, 3 and 4 laboratories). Head of Capacity Building projects in West Africa to better prepare the response to outbreaks of highly pathogenic diseases, agent analyses, detection of disease, treatment options, personal protection under recognition of social aspects and boundaries, Ebola Framework, Medevac, since 2014.

Moreover, author and co-author of many scientific publications. Currently he is a member of many Professional Societies, Steering Committees and Advisory Boards e.g.: American Society of Virology (ASV), American Society of Microbiology (ASM), German Pharmaceutical Society (DPhG), Work group Pharmacology and Toxicology, International Society for Infectious Diseases (ISID), Scientific Committee Med-Vet-Net Association (MVNA), Advisory Board International and Emergency Management Institute (ISEMI).

dr. Martha Betson

University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom

Dr Martha Betson is Associate Professor in Veterinary Parasitology and Head of Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences at the University of Surrey School of Veterinary Medicine, UK. She is a parasitologist with a One Health outlook. Her research integrates laboratory work, fieldwork and epidemiology to understand the transmission dynamics of parasitic diseases of humans and animals, with the aim of improving parasite control. This includes the study of parasite population genetics and genomics and the development and evaluation of diagnostic tests. Martha has a particular interest in neglected tropical diseases and parasitic diseases at the wildlife-domestic animal-human interface. She is a programme lead at the University of Surrey Institute for Sustainability.

dr. Selene Rubiola

University of Turin,
Italy

Selene graduated in Veterinary Medicine (DVM) in 2016 at the Department of Veterinary Sciences of the University of Turin (Italy) with a thesis investigating the presence of the zoonotic trematode Alaria alata in red foxes. She then completed her PhD in Veterinary Sciences for Animal Health and Food Safety with a thesis focusing on the application of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies to investigate the presence of antimicrobial-resistance genes in food matrices. During her PhD and Postdoctoral fellowships, Selene spent research periods at the University College Dublin, Centre for Food Safety (UCD-CFS, Ireland), at the Muséum d’histoire naturelle (MHN) of Genève (Switzerland) and at the Institute of Parasitology of the Universität Bern, Vetsuisse faculty (Switzerland). In May 2024, Selene won a National award for Science Communication with a presentation about the association of bovine sarcocystosis and eosinophilic myositis. She is currently a junior researcher (RTDA) at the University of Turin.

Selene’s research interests lie in Veterinary Public Health, with a special focus on the investigation of foodborne pathogens and on the application of NGS technologies in food safety. She is currently mainly involved in foodborne parasitology, focusing on protozoa (e.g. Sarcocystis spp.), trematodes and cestodes as emerging and often neglected foodborne parasites.

dr. Mirosław Różycki

Poznan University of Life Sciences, Poland

Doctor of veterinary medicine specializing in Parasitology and Hygiene of Slaughter Animals and Food of Animal Origin. Main area of activity is food safety, epidemiology and parasitology. From 2002 to 2022, he was responsible for the activities of the National Reference Laboratory for Trichinellosis and Anisakiosis. As part of these responsibilities, he was in charge of organizing proficiency testing and training for veterinarians. He collaborated with Veterinary Hygiene Institutions, field doctors and institutions such as the Chief Veterinary Inspectorate, European Commission, EURLP, OECD, Codex Alimentarius and ISO. He currently serves as an assistant professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Poznań University of Life Sciences, where he teaches Parasitology and Food Hygiene.

Prof. Krzysztof Tomczuk

University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland

Head of the Department of Parasitology and Fish Diseases and the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin. Graduate of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural University of Lublin in 1988. Since 1989, employed as an assistant in the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases at his alma mater. In 1998 he obtained his doctoral degree in veterinary sciences on the basis of his thesis “Toxocara roundworms: selected aspects of invasiology and human health risk”. In 2013, he obtained the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Sciences on the basis of the monograph: Characterisation of Anoplocephala perfoliata invasion in horses with molecular and proteomic aspects. In 2015, he took up the position of associate professor. In 2019 he was awarded the title of Professor of Veterinary Sciences in Parasitology. He organises regular parasitological scientific conferences at the Museum of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine in Ciechanowiec. The topics of his scientific work mainly concern issues of diagnostics, therapy, prophylaxis and broadly understood invasiology of livestock, companion and free-living animals with particular emphasis on parasitic zoonoses. In successive phases of his scientific work, he dealt with economically and epidemiologically important invasions of the time. Among others, he has conducted research on the invasion and pathogenesis of swine scabies, toxocariasis of carnivores and humans, anoplocephalosis of ungulates, fasciolosis and neosporosis of ruminants, coccidiosis of calves, gastrointestinal nematode infestations of horses, cattle and sheep, dirofilariosis of dogs, invasive diseases of birds and many other topics concerning veterinary parasitology. In addition to his scientific activities, he carries out field clinical activities. Chairman of the Veterinary Section of the Polish Society of Parasitology and Chairman of the Lublin Branch of the PTP, Member of the Lublin Scientific Society, Founding Member of the Polish Section of ESCCAP (European Scientific Counsel Companion Animal Parasites). Member of the Polish Society of Veterinary Sciences, Member of the Committee of Veterinary Sciences and Reproductive Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in 2020-2024, Member of the Scientific Excellence Council in the field of veterinary medicine in the term 2024-2028. Member of the Scientific Council of the Museum of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine in Ciechanowiec, President of the Union of Employees of the University of Life Sciences in Lublin.

18.03.2024 Lublin . prof dr hab Anna Bogucka - Kocka
Fot. Kuba Suszek
prof. Anna Bogucka-Kocka

Medical University of Lublin, Poland

Prof. Anna Bogucka-Kocka is the author/co-author of 203 original papers with a total IF=414.266; PK=8901. Her research results were presented in 233 papers at national and international conferences  (h-index=25 by Web of Science Core Collection; h-index=26 by Scopus). She was manager of 4 and principal investigator in 6 research projects. The investigations of her team focuses on issues related to transcriptomics, proteomics, parasitological diagnostics and studies of mechanisms of drug function and search for new compounds that are candidates for new antiparasitic drugs, and genetic biomarkers of parasitic diseases and diseases of civilisation, e.g. diseases associated with endothelial pathology of blood vessels in patients with chronic venous insufficiency, aneurysms and atherosclerosis, breast cancer and toxoplasmosis. Further research focuses on the diagnosis of parasitic diseases and the search for compounds of plant and fungal origin and those obtained by chemical synthesis with antiparasitic activity. He carries out this research based on an original model described in: Patent. Poland, No. 232918. Method of culturing nematodes of the genus Rhabditis sp. and determining the activity of nematicidal substances. (U.M. in Lublin, Authors: Anna Bogucka-Kocka, Przemysław Kołodziej). To date, the results of research using the above model have led to 12 patents. She has described new compounds, i.e. boron clusters, triazole derivatives, rhodanine derivatives, low molecular weight fractions of secondary metabolites from the fungus Cerrena unicolor with significant nematicidal activity against model nematodes of the genus Rhabditis sp. and pathogenic nematodes parasitising goats and horses. In the studies conducted, the nematicidal activity of the compounds was shown to be significantly higher than that of the commercial drugs used. She is co-author of 24 patents and 2 know-how. The patents obtained received: Gold medal at the 13th INTARG 2020 International Trade Fair of Inventions and Innovations for the invention “Newly synthesised compounds with nematicidal and antiparasitic activity”; Gold medal at the 13th INTARG 2020 International Trade Fair of Inventions and Innovations for the invention “Method of diagnosing arteriosclerosis and application of miRNA markers for diagnosing arteriosclerosis”; International Federation of Inventors’ Associations – IFIA – Award for the invention “Method of diagnosing arteriosclerosis and application of miRNA markers for diagnosing arteriosclerosis” received at the 13th INTARG 2020 International Trade Fair for Inventions and Innovations; Gold medal at the 14th INTARG 2021 International Trade Fair of Inventions and Innovations for the invention “Polyphenolic composition with application in prevention and support of treatment of neurodegenerative diseases especially Alzheimer’s”; Special Award of World Invention Intellectual Property Association WIIPA at the 14th INTARG 2021 International Trade Fair of Inventions and Innovations for the invention “Polyphenolic composition with application in prevention and support of treatment of neurodegenerative diseases especially Alzheimer’s”; Bronze medal at the 15th INTARG 2022 International Trade Fair for Inventions and Innovations for the invention “Method of culturing human and animal stem cells using a plant secretion obtained from the species Drosophyllum lusitannicum“; Gold medal at the 16th INTARG 2023 International Invention and Innovation Fair for the invention “Application of microRNA markers for detecting the presence of abdominal aortic aneurysms and method of diagnosing abdominal aortic aneurysms”; Gold medal at the International Warsaw Invention Show IWIS 2023 for the invention “Application of microRNA markers for detecting the presence of abdominal aortic aneurysms and method of diagnosing abdominal aortic aneurysms”. For her significant achievements in the field of implementation activities in the area of pharmacology, neuropharmaceuticals and the application of miRNA markers for the diagnosis of arteriosclerosis, she received the Minister of Health Award on 28.10.2021.

dr. Dawid Jańczak

Poland


Dawid Jańczak, M.D., veterinarian and specialist in veterinary laboratory diagnostics. Graduate of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences. Currently head of ANIMALLAB Laboratory and member of the Polish Consultative Council on Parasitoses of Companion Animals ESCCAP Poland. Author of scientific and popular science publications in the areas of parasitology, microbiology, gastroenterology, parasitic zoonoses, newly emerging parasitoses of dogs and cats.

dr. Beata Szostakowska

Institute of Maritime and Tropical Medicine Medical University of Gdansk, Poland

PhD Beata Szostakowska is working at Department of Tropical Parasitology, Faculty of Health Sciences with the Institute of Maritime and Tropical Medicine at Medical University of Gdańsk. She is a specialist in the field of Laboratory Medical Parasitology and Microbiology, vice-president of the Polish Parasitological Society, chairwoman of the Committee for Parasitology at the National Council of Laboratory Diagnostics, member of the Molecular Biology Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences, scientific supervisor in the European continuing education program for specialists in medical parasitology e-PARASITimage.

Her scientific interests included: tropical and cosmopolitan parasites and parasitosis, especially research on the occurrence of dispersal forms of human parasites in the environment, research on the prevalence, taxonomy and pathogenicity of nematodes from the Anisakidae family (parasites of marine organisms that are also pathogenic to humans) and parasitological diagnostics.

Dr. Jacek Karamon

Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases, National Veterinary Institute - National Research Institute (PIWet-PIB), Puławy, Poland

Doctor of veterinary medicine, employed at the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases of the National Veterinary Institute in Puławy since 2001, currently as a associated professor. He completed his PhD thesis concerning Isospora suis infection in piglets in 2006. He obtained the post-doctoral degree in 2017, presenting an achievement regarding the epidemiology, diagnostics and genetic diversity of Echinococcus multilocularis. Supervisor of two doctoral theses (one already completed). Scope of current scientific activity: research on the occurrence of parasitic helminths of zoonotic importance, including mainly E. multilocularis, E. granulosus s.l. in domestic and free-living animals; epidemiology, molecular diagnostics, genotyping. He is the person responsible for reference activities in the field of echinococcosis and dourine (Trypanosoma equiperdum). Author of 111 publications indexed in Web of Science (H-index: 19), coordinator/participant of several projects financed by: National Science Centre in Poland and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and European projects, including: EFSA (EmIA), EJP (MEmE), OH4Survillence. Member of the Polish Parasitological Society.

Dr. Jacek Sroka

Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases, National Veterinary Institute - National Research Institute (PIWet), Puławy Department of Biological Health Hazards and Parasitology, W. Chodźko Institute of Rural Medicine, Lublin, Poland

Doctor of veterinary medicine, employed at the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases of the National Veterinary Research Institute in Puławy since 2007, currently as an associated professor. Since 1994, he has also been employed at Institute of Rural Health, Department of Health Biohazards and Parasitology (assistant professor). His PhD thesis: “Studies on Toxoplasma gondii occurrence in farm and wild animals from area of Lublin province as a threat to rural inhabitants health” (2005). The post-doctoral degree obtained in 2018 (assessment of potential sources of Toxoplasma gondii infection in Poland). Promoter of 3 PhD theses. Scientific activity: research on the occurrence of Toxoplasma gondii, Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia duodenalis in animals, humans and the environment; epidemiology, serological and molecular diagnostics, genotyping. He is responsible for the activities of the NRL for toxoplasmosis in Poland. Author of 107 publications indexed in Web of Science (H index: 23), coordinator of several projects financed by the National Science Centre in Poland and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, participant of European projects, including ONE Health EJP (TOXOSOURCES, PARADISE), COST Action FA1408. Member of the Polish Parasitological Society. 

Dr. Jolanta Małgorzata Zdybel

Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases, National Veterinary Institute - National Research Institute (PIWet-PIB), Puławy, Poland

Assistant Professor at the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases of the National Veterinary Research Institute in Puławy. Her main research interests include issues related to intestinal parasitic nematodes, methods of assessing the viability of parasite eggs, including using fluorescent dyes, environmental parasitological studies, assessment of parasitological threats to human and animal health related to the use of fertilizers and animal by-products. Author of 41 peer-reviewed publications. Author of 2 standardized methods (approved by Polish Standardization Committee) in Poland, 6 patent applications, coordinator of several projects financed by the National Science Centre and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Member of the Polish Parasitological Society, the Polish Society of Veterinary Sciences and Action COST CA 16110 on the control of human pathogenic microorganisms in plant production systems (HUPLANTcontrol) and Action COST FA1404 on improving the state of knowledge and research in the field of sustainable control of the Dermanyssus gallinae mite (COREMI).

Małgorzata Samorek-Pieróg, MSC

Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases, National Veterinary Institute - National Research Institute (PIWet-PIB), Puławy, Poland

Scientist at the Department of Parasitology and Invasive Diseases of the National Veterinary Research Institute in Puławy, Poland. Responsible for research related to the detection of invasions of parasites of the Echinococcus genus and other parasites occurring in free-living carnivorous animals. Research on the occurrence of E. aerophilus is the main axis of her planned doctoral thesis. She has many years of experience in the field of parasitology and molecular biology, which is confirmed by numerous internships and trainings, including: training on new methods of molecular diagnostics of Echinococcus spp. with elements of genotyping, EURL, Rome, Italy (2023); training entitled: “Joint Training Course of the inter EURLs Working Group on NGS: Introduction to Bioinformatics for genomic data mining; Rome, Italy (2022); training on the diagnosis of Taenia solium and Teania saginata entitled: “Cystinet Training School on Veterinary Diagnostics”; Antwerp, Belgium (2016); internship at the University of Idaho, USA, in the Department of Plant Molecular Biology (2013).

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