Dear Parasitologists,

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the international conference hosted by the Slovak Society for Parasitology and the Institute of Parasitology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, to be held in the High Tatras, Slovakia. Our conference continues the tradition of biannual scientific meetings, which began in 1994 and has been organized jointly by the Slovak Society for Parasitology and the Czech Society for Parasitology. This year, the conference will once again be held in an expanded format as the third continuation of Parasites in the Heart of Europe, welcoming parasitologists from a broad international community, with English serving as the official language. In addition, the traditional scientific meeting “Labuda’s Days“ dedicated to the eminent Slovak biologist Milan Labuda, will be held as an integral part of the programme. Participants will have the opportunity to hear renowned speakers addressing a wide range of topics. The conference will also provide ample opportunities for attendees to present their own work, encouraging scientific discussion and fostering collaboration among researchers from the international scientific community.

The organizers are looking forward to extending a warm welcome to you in the High Tatras.

Mikuláš Oros

president
Slovak Society for Parasitology

Contact

Slovak Society for Parasitology at SAS
Hlinkova 3
040 01 Košice
Slovakia
tel.: +421 55 633 44 55

http://conpro.saske.sk/paradni2026

CORRESPONDENCE: paradni2026@saske.sk

Organizing and Scientific Committee

Chair: Mikuláš Oros

Members:
Daniela Antolová
Daniel Barčák
Vojtech Boldiš
Zuzana Hurníková
Alica Kočišová
Zuzana Vasilková

Venue

The SOREA TITRIS hotel is located in a peaceful area close to the center of Tatranská Lomnica. It is situated near the Botanical Garden, which features an exposition on Tatra nature, and the TANAP (Tatra National Park) Museum.

GPS Coordinates: E 20° 17′ 19″ N 49° 10′ 2″

For more information, visit: https://www.sorea.sk/en/vysoke-tatry/hotel-sorea-titris/

(Note: Photographs are sourced from the hotel’s website.)

Key note speakers

Prof. Andrei Mihalca - amihalca@usamvcluj.ro

Title: Extraintestinal nematodes of wild carnivores in Europe: from medical importance to conservation


Prof. Andrei D. Mihalca, DVM, DipECZM, graduated from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Cluj-Napoca, Romania in 2002 and he obtained his PhD in 2007. Since 2014 he is Diplomate of ECZM (Wildlife Population Health). In 2022-2025 he served as president of ECZM. Since 2023, he is the Secretary of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology. His main research interests include ecology of vectors, wildlife and conservation medicine. He published more than 270 papers in peer-reviewed journals and has an H-index of 35. He is currently the Chair for Guidelines at TroCCAP. Additionally, he is an external consultant for EFSA, ECDC, CITES, WWF, IAEA. He coordinated over 40 grants and is actively involved in projects on parasitic and infectious diseases of animals across sub-Saharan Africa and South America. He is in the editorial board of several journals, including Parasites & Vectors, IJP: Parasites & Wildlife, BMC Veterinary Research, or Veterinary Parasitology: RSR. In his free time, he does wildlife photography and travels.

Prof. Piotr Tryjanowski - piotr.tryjanowski@gmail.com

Title: Winged minds and hidden manipulators: parasites and cognition processes


Prof. Piotr Tryjanowski is among Poland’s most influential biologists, heading Zoology at Poznań University of Life Sciences and affiliated with Munich’s Institute for Advanced Study. Renowned for studies on bird ecology, human–nature interactions, urban wildlife, and the cognitive function of animals, he integrates One Health perspectives into his research. Member of Academia Europaea and Polish Academy of Sciences, IPCC/IUCN contributor, author of 20 books and over 400 high-impact papers. His popular works explore therapeutic effects of birds and nature on the human brain. In his free time, he watches birds, enjoys good wine, cheese, and the sound of sheep.

Prof. Adriano Casulli - adriano.casulli@iss.it

Title: Unveiling the unrecognized burden of cystic and alveolar echinococcosis: an European perspective

Adriano Casulli, PhD, holds the position of Research Director at the Department of Infectious diseases at ISTITUTO SUPERIORE DI SANITÀ (Italian National Institute of Health - Rome, Italy), where he acts as director of the Unit of “Foodborne and Neglected Parasitic Diseases” (accredited as UNI CEI EN ISO/IEC 17025 and 17043). He also serve as director of the “European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites” (EURL-P, food safety), “European Union Reference Laboratory for Public Health on Helminths and Protozoa (EURL-PH-HP)” and the “WHO Collaborating Centre for the epidemiology, detection and control of Cystic and Alveolar Echinococcosis (One Health)”. He is scientist and advocate in the field of parasitic foodborne and Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) with a focus on molecular and clinical epidemiology of cystic and alveolar echinococcosis. He is co-author of more than 160 scientific publications, reviewer for several peer-review journals, evaluator for international research projects, external expert for international agencies (ECDC, EFSA, WHO, FAO, WOAH) and member of the Editorial board of several international peer-review journals. He is the coordinator of many granted international collaborative research projects on helminths funded on competitive bases. He is data passionate and drawn to science.

Prof. David Carmena - dacarmena@isciii.es

Title: Impact of the COVID-19 restrictions on the epidemiology of Cryptosporidium spp. in Spain

David Carmena is a Senior Scientist at the Parasitology Reference and Research Laboratory, National Centre for Microbiology, Majadahonda, Spain, where he has worked since May 2013. His research interests include: (i) the molecular epidemiology of diarrhoea-causing enteric protists and their implications for diagnosis, transmission dynamics, and zoonotic potential, from both human and animal health perspectives; and (ii) the mechanisms regulating the transition from infection to disease (particularly in vulnerable populations), with special emphasis on interactions among intestinal microbiota microorganisms and antimicrobial resistance phenomena. As a result of his scientific activity, DC has authored 166 peer-reviewed articles (with an additional ten currently under review), 15 book chapters, and more than 200 communications at national and international conferences. He has developed extensive editorial activity, serving as Associate Editor of Parasitologia and as a member of the Editorial Boards of several journals. DC has reviewed more than 350 manuscripts and regularly acts as an evaluator of research proposals for international funding agencies.

Registration fees for participants

The registration fee includes: access to the scientific and social programmes, conference materials, coffee breaks, meals (lunches and dinners), a welcome drink, an experience trip to Nestville distillery, and a gala dinner.

Registration Fee Types:

Regular Participant Fee:370.00 €
SSP Member Fee:320.00 €
Student*:270.00 €
Student with Oral Presentation**:200.00 €
Accompanying Person***:170.00 €

*PhD students, MSc students and undergraduate students are eligible for student fees. Proof of student status is mandatory.
**All student lectures will automatically be entered into the Best Student Lecture Competition.
*** The fee for accompanying persons includes meals and participation in the social programmes.

All rates include 23 % VAT.

Registration will open on March 1, 2026.