Researchers:Prof. Dr. Selim Aslan, Prof. Dr. Abdullah Başoğlu, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Beyza Ulusoy, Dr. Deniz Ceylanlı, Dr. Fatma Kaya Yıldırım, Dr. Feride Zabitler, Dr. Hazel Tamakan, Dr. Hüseyin Şah, Araş. Gör. Sevgi Gençosman

The relationship between humans, animals, and ecosystems has been ongoing since the world came into existence. The relationship between these three is quite complex. All kinds of changes in the ecosystem are directly reflected in human and animal health. More than 60% of human pathogens are of animal origin. Today, approximately 25% of the infectious diseases that pose a threat to public health are zoonotic diseases. Zoonoses are diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans and show similar clinical findings in both animals and humans. Globally, more than one billion people are exposed to infections caused by zoonoses annually, and it is stated that one million people die from zoonoses. The global importance of animal health and the direct link between human and animal health support the fact that most human diseases are of animal origin.

We should not forget that humans and animals are indispensable parts of nature. A significant part of the human population is in close contact with animals or animal products at different intervals due to their occupation, the geographical location of the places in which they live, or the cultures of the countries. Domestic animals in urban life and cattle or small cattle in rural areas live together with people. During the process including the production, preparation, packaging, storage, and distribution of animal foods, the human factor comes to the fore because milk and dairy products, meat, and meat products are indispensable foods for us to live. Reducing the impact of endemic and emerging zoonotic diseases that are important to public health requires multi-sectoral collaboration and interdisciplinary partnerships. The interdisciplinary, multi-sectoral “One Health” approach is considered a key strategy for effective prevention and control, as more than 75 percent of human infectious diseases in the world today are zoonotic in origin. In the fight against global zoonosis, “One Health” is an integrative system that provides holistic, single goal and joint decision-making. The One Health concept aims to raise awareness of people in the context of disease epidemiology and to develop preventive strategies to improve the quality of public health. All experts state that "interdisciplinary cooperation and the spirit of working together" are required to combat pandemics.

As the Veterinary Research Group, we continue our efforts to develop products with high added value for the diagnosis and treatment of animal diseases and protection from animal-borne diseases in the triangle of human, animal, and ecosystem by conducting research in line with the global importance of animal health. By acting with one health awareness, we work dedicatedly to produce projects that will enable the training of researchers who can conduct research in this field at international standards. Especially in our country, we carry out investigations aiming to increase the productivity of farm animals by using assisted reproduction techniques and prevent infertility in ruminants and other animal species. We generate projects by utilizing technological methods to increase the number of offspring and prevent economic losses caused by microbial diseases. We aim to develop animal products to meet different consumer demands within the scope of R&D studies of products with food value, prevent diseases transmitted from animals to humans, and protecting public health, and provide multidisciplinary scientific activities for researchers in multidisciplinary fields in the concept of One Health.