PRINCIPLES OF PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF TRANSMISSIBLE ANIMAL DISEASES

The course includes two main topics:
Principles of Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases
Principles of Prevention and Control of Parasitic Diseases

The lectures include:
General features of viral, bacterial and parasitic agents (protozoans, helminths, acanthocephalans, parasitic arthropods and dermatophytes)
Definition and importance of zoonoses
Parasitic life cycles; examples concerning laboratory animals (rodents and fish) and wild animals
Routes of transmission of infectious and parasitic diseases, including zoonoses, in laboratory animals (rodents and zebrafish), zoo animals and aquarium animals
Sources of disease, potential disease risks and specific predisposing factors in animal facilities and health-screening programs suitable for animals in their care to maintain appropriate health status will be part of the seminars with experts.
Diagnostic of pathogens
Biosecurity and preventive measures of infectious and parasitic diseases among animals and between animals and humans in the different facilities

The practical activities include:
Correct collection and storage of biological samples (e.g. faeces, skin scrapings, cloacal/rectal swabs, tissue samples, etc.) for the microbiological and parasitological examination
Basic isolation and identification procedures of infectious and parasitic agents (e.g. macroscopic and microscopic examination of specimens, isolation on culture media, identification with biochemical testing and molecular techniques) of wild and laboratory animals