The foundation of veterinary medicine education in Burdur was laid with the establishment of the "Akdeniz University Burdur Faculty of Veterinary Medicine" on July 3, 1992. The faculty started its undergraduate education in the 1996-1997 academic year with 30 students and has continued its activities aimed at meeting the qualified veterinary needs of the region since that period. The faculty completed its restructuring under the new university umbrella by connecting to Mehmet Akif Ersoy University, which was established in Burdur on March 17, 2006; during this process, the Department of Parasitology also took its place among the basic scientific units since the early years of the faculty's establishment. The first faculty members of the Department of Parasitology, Prof. Dr. Bayram Ali YUKARI and Prof. Dr. Şinasi UMUR, played significant roles in shaping the academic structure of the faculty and the department, and in institutionalizing educational and research activities.
The vision of the department is to be an academic unit recognized at national and international levels in the field of veterinary parasitology, accepted as a reference with the scientific data it produces, and to have high-quality education and training. In line with this vision, one of the main priorities is to train veterinarians and parasitologists who can compete internationally, fostering a research culture among students and supporting critical thinking and lifelong learning skills. The Department of Parasitology has adopted the mission of raising individuals who are aware of their responsibility to serve society, capable of understanding the problems related to Parasitology with a veterinary consciousness, and able to produce and implement lasting solutions to these problems, keeping up with the developments in science and technology.
The mission of the Department of Parasitology is to conduct advanced education and research on the epidemiology, ecology, taxonomy, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control of parasites affecting animal and human health in the fields of helminthology, protozoology, and entomology. In this context, the department aims to train veterinarians and researchers who can produce scientific solutions to parasitic problems encountered in the field by providing theoretical and practical education based on current scientific knowledge at undergraduate and graduate levels.
Our department contributes to regional livestock by assisting in the diagnosis of parasitic infections and the identification of parasites in line with requests from the public and the community, and by organizing seminars on current topics related to parasitology.
In the Department of Parasitology, both undergraduate and graduate education and research activities are carried out, providing information on the classification, life cycle, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control methods of all internal and external parasites, as well as information related to Fish diseases, Bee diseases, and Poultry diseases. The Department of Parasitology is located within the Preclinical Sciences Department of the Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.
At the undergraduate level in the Department of Parasitology, in addition to compulsory courses such as General Parasitology, Helminthology, Protozoology, Entomology, Fish Diseases, Infectious Poultry Diseases, and Bee Diseases, elective courses such as Parasitic Diagnostic Methods and Parasitic Zoonoses are also offered; these courses cover the clinical and laboratory diagnosis, life cycles, classification, treatment, prevention, and control of parasitic infections seen in different animal species in detail. In the practical parts of the courses, it is aimed for students to acquire basic parasitology laboratory skills such as microscopic examination, fecal examination techniques, evaluation of blood and tissue smears, and ectoparasite identification.
The graduate education of the Department includes the Veterinary Parasitology Master's program, which was opened in 2010, and the Doctorate Program opened in 2021, continuing to train specialists and researchers in the field of veterinary parasitology. To date, 7 (seven) master's students have graduated from the department. 5 (five) master's and 3 (three) doctoral students are still continuing their education.
In addition to the routine diagnostic laboratory, the Department of Parasitology also has a Molecular Parasitology Laboratory where research studies are conducted and a practical classroom where practical lessons are held. Additionally, there is a library of the department containing sufficient local and foreign reference books that all students and faculty members can benefit from, as well as a seminar room that also serves as a study room.
Faculty members of the department, who have served as executors or researchers in many national and international projects, also play an active role in the Regional Development-Oriented Livestock Project conducted by our university, contributing to the protection of animal health and public health at regional and national levels.
The faculty staff of the department consists of 2 Professors, 1 Associate Professor, and 1 Research Assistant. Currently, the head of the department is Prof. Dr. Ramazan ADANIR.
Since the establishment of the department, the faculty members who have served include; Prof. Dr. Bayram Ali YUKARI (1998- continuing), Prof. Dr. Şinasi UMUR (1998-2004), Prof. Dr. Ahmet GÖKCEN (2012-2019), Prof. Dr. Ramazan ADANIR (2004- continuing), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Galip KAYA (2009-2011), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur KÖSE (2011- continuing), and Res. Asst. Mustafa Furkan PALA (2020- continuing), who have made significant contributions to education, research, and infrastructure activities.
The future goals of the Department of Parasitology include;
- More effective use of molecular diagnostic methods in helminth infections, conducting field and laboratory studies to monitor antiparasitic drug resistance, and updating the regional prevalence of zoonotic helminths.
- Conducting research on the ecology of ticks and other ectoparasites, species distribution, and the molecular epidemiology of vector-borne diseases they carry; examining the effects of climate change and environmental factors on parasite and vector dynamics.
- Clarifying the taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships of protozoan and arthropod parasites using molecular methods; integrating the obtained data with national and international databases.
- Ensuring more active participation in projects funded by national and international sources, and conducting innovative studies aimed at new generation diagnostics, control, and early warning systems through these projects.
- Involving young researchers and graduate students more in project-based studies, thereby training competent new scientists in the field of parasitology.
