Kazan Becomes Center for Agricultural Biosafety Discussion
Kazan hosted the international scientific and practical conference "Innovative Solutions to Current Issues of Biological, Toxicological, and Radiation Safety for the Agro-Industrial Complex," dedicated to the 65th anniversary of the Federal Center for Toxicological, Radiation, and Biological Safety.
The event was attended by Marat Zyabbarov, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan and Minister of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan; Evgeniya Beloshapka, Deputy Director of the Veterinary Department of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation; Rifkat Minnikhanov, President of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan; and Danil Mingaleev, Director of the Federal Center for Toxicological, Radiation, and Biological Safety of the Russian Federation. Maxim Uvaidov, State Secretary and Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, also participated via videoconference.
Guests also attended the grand opening of the research and innovation center in Kazan.
The Scientific and Innovation Center is a specialized platform for fundamental and applied research in biology and veterinary medicine. The new preclinical research center will enable safety studies of original and import-substituting veterinary drugs and feed additives, as well as the accreditation of a veterinary drug testing laboratory for their introduction into civilian circulation.
"The state's goal is to ensure epizootic safety and food security so that our livestock industry is not dependent on foreign veterinary drugs, diagnostic kits, and so on," said Maxim Uvaidov.
According to him, there is a full supply of domestically produced drugs for particularly dangerous animal diseases. "In other areas, we already have a good percentage—80-90%. But there is still room for improvement and refinement. Today's conference will help find innovative solutions that will further develop our industry," he noted.
The research center conducts fundamental and applied research in toxicology, molecular biology, and infectious pathology. It was established in strict compliance with sanitary and epidemiological requirements and ensures safe working conditions for microorganisms. It is equipped with modern research equipment and facilities for housing infected animals, allowing for comprehensive studies on laboratory animals.
"There are many tasks, not only in developing new drugs and new directions, but also the enormous task of developing the livestock industry, and the institute has tremendous potential in various areas," said Evgeniya Beloshapka.
According to Marat Zyabbarov, the following are currently important objectives: "To preserve and enhance the existing scientific and educational potential, to ensure the continuity of traditions and experience, and, together with other scientific institutions in the country, to develop priority areas that contribute to strengthening the veterinary support system and biosecurity in the agro-industrial complex.”
This year, the Federal Center for Veterinary and Radiological Health — All-Russian Research Institute of Veterinary Medicines is participating in the federal project "Veterinary Drugs" of the national project "Technological Support for Food Security." It is purchasing high-tech equipment for the development and implementation of effective and safe veterinary drugs with import substitution potential, aimed at preventing and reducing the risk of spreading the most common socially and economically significant infectious diseases of farm animals.
Over 200 papers were presented at the conference by participants from St. Petersburg, Omsk, Obninsk, Pokrov, Vladimir, Dagestan, Kursk, Stavropol, Krasnodar, and neighboring countries such as Belarus and Kazakhstan.
The conference included a roundtable discussion on "Especially Dangerous and Socially Significant Animal Diseases." Particular attention was paid to issues of current problems in immunoprophylaxis, the development and improvement of biological preparations for the diagnosis and specific prevention of chlamydia, the prevention of brucellosis, epizootic welfare, the prevention of viral infections in animals, current aspects of epidemiological surveillance of anthrax, animal tuberculosis, and the legal regulation of the organization of veterinary activities.