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For the recently established One Health Institute (OHI) at the University of Georgia in Tbilisi, building research capacity in One Health has been one of its primary strategic priorities. In this context, expanding institutional activities and strengthening both national and international networking have been essential steps toward engaging with academic and research institutions that actively advance One Health research worldwide. |
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The University of Georgia, through its research unit OHI, has been privileged to become a member of the European One Health Association (EOHA), an organization that plays a pivotal role in promoting One Health across the European Union. Among EOHA’s highly respected member institutions is the European Union Reference Laboratory for Escherichia coli in Italy, which has made significant contributions to foodborne disease surveillance within the EU. Following OHI’s announcement of its training needs in next-generation sequencing (NGS) and SNP-based phylogenetic analyses, the Director of the EU Reference Laboratory for E. coli, Dr. Stefano Morabito, together with his colleagues Drs. Federica Gigliucci and Valeria Michelacci, responded promptly and with great enthusiasm. Our Italian colleagues organized and delivered an outstanding advanced training course for young investigators from OHI, focusing on these critical methodological areas. |
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The knowledge and practical skills acquired through this training have become a crucial foundation for OHI’s efforts to plan and initiate robust, research-driven genomic surveillance of foodborne pathogens in Georgia. This close partnership between OHI and EOHA, along with its distinguished member organizations, clearly demonstrates the importance of integrating Georgian academic institutions into the European research and education landscape. Such integration is essential for advancing One Health, public health, and related scientific fields in Georgia. |
