Korea opens wildlife disease seminar to train next generation of experts

South Korea's environment ministry said Sunday that its National Institute of Wildlife Disease Control and Prevention will hold an academic seminar in Daejeon on Nov. 2 to share research by graduate students training in wildlife disease, part of a programme the institute funds at four universities.

The event at the Daejeon Ramada Hotel in the city's Yuseong District will have graduate students present their findings, with experts in the field exchanging views with them.

"I hope this event becomes a meaningful occasion for future specialists in the wildlife disease field to share their research results and exchange views with experts in related areas," said Lee Chang-kyu, the institute's director. He added that the institute will continue training specialists and widening its research base.

The four universities in the programme are Kangwon National University, Seoul National University, Jeonbuk National University and Chungbuk National University. Students from each are scheduled to present.

From Chungbuk National University, Lee Yu-jin will present a case of Spirometra mansoni infection found in a weasel that died of purulent pleuropneumonia. Tran Dinh Bao Vy, also of Chungbuk, will report on coccidia detected in rescued water deer and on the morphological and molecular characteristics of the genus Eimeria.

Seoul National University's Do Hai Quynh will assess the biological and pathogenic characteristics of a novel bat-derived mammalian orthoreovirus serotype 2 isolated in Korea in 2020.

Kangwon National University's Yoo Kang-yeon will present on establishing hematological and blood-chemistry reference ranges for raccoon mite infections and developing a tool to predict death risk, while Cho Min-jae will present on the behavioural ecology of the endangered long-tailed goral using location-tracking data.

Jeonbuk National University's Chung Tae-young will present a performance evaluation of molecular diagnostic techniques for infectious diseases in wildlife. Experts from the National Institute of Biological Resources, the Korea National Park Service, a bioscience research ethics archive and Jeonbuk National University will also give lectures, extending the programme beyond disease to bioethics and ecology.