A new international campus for equine studies
ANSES is a partner of the International Equine Campus, whose first stone was laid today, 10 October. The campus will aim to give an international dimension to the Normandy site, which specialises in equine research and training.
The International Equine Campus will be built on the Goustranville site in Normandy. This site is already home to the Pathophysiology and Epidemiology of Equine Diseases (PhEED) Unit of the ANSES Laboratory for Animal Health, the Centre for Imaging and Research on Equine Locomotor Disorders (Cirale) of the Alfort National Veterinary School (ENVA), and the racing laboratory of the French National Horse Racing Federation.
ANSES's premises renovated and refurbished
This project, led by the Normandy Equine Valley joint association, is being financed by the Normandy region, the Calvados département, the Eperon fund, the French State and European funds. It will aim to give the site an international dimension. Part of the funding for ANSES's PhEED Unit will be used to renovate and refurbish its premises, while reducing the number of buildings, with a view to saving energy and streamlining resources. The laboratories will be optimised, and a new reception hall, offices, storage areas for materials and archives, and a new meeting room will be created.
Renovated research premises will enable PhEED to broaden the spectrum of its research projects and strengthen scientific cooperation and partnerships, by hosting new internationally renowned researchers. This will help the unit consolidate the exercise of its many European and international reference mandates.
Closer collaboration with the Alfort National Veterinary School
The links between training and research will also be reinforced. Relocating ENVA students specialising in equine health to the campus will enable regular training to be organised within the PhEED Unit. This unit will also be able to use the future connected clinical amphitheatre. This will enable live remote transmission of interventions and diagnostic procedures performed on horses. The amphitheatre will also be able to host international scientific events.
Other new buildings are planned on the campus, to accommodate ENVA's treatment and training activities, as well as associations and innovative companies in the equine field.
The PhEED Unit
The Pathophysiology and Epidemiology of Equine Diseases (PhEED) Unit specialises in persistent and/or emerging infections of major importance in the equine sector, as well as diseases affecting horse reproduction.
Within this framework, it studies and characterises pathogens, and develops diagnostic tools and control measures for these diseases.
The unit holds national and European reference mandates for several equine diseases. It is also a World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) reference laboratory for dourine and contagious equine metritis.
Lastly, the unit monitors the appearance and/or spread of major and emerging equine diseases, mainly through necropsies and expert appraisals, and also through the coordination of Resumeq, the national equine mortality surveillance network.