Education
Korec graduated from the Faculty of Science, Charles University in 1981, in Molecular Biology and Genetics. His Master’s thesis was an Analysis of Susceptibility and Resistance to Rous Sarcoma Virus in Inbred Line of Minor Poultry. Between 1983 and 1986 he worked as a researcher at the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czechoslovak Academy of Science, where he received a PhD in Oncology, with a doctoral thesis on the Expression and Detection of Virus Proteins of Tumor Viruses.
After 1986, Korec completed long-term research fellowships at universities across Europe, including the University of Göttingen in Germany, and universities in London and Paris. He was the co-author of 11 patents in the field of Molecular Biology and Genetics, publishing more than 20 research articles in international scientific journals.
He speaks English and Russian.
Business career
After returning from abroad in 1992, he founded a residential development company EKOSPOL. He has been Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board since 1992.
In 2015, he became director of the ZOO Tabor which was in danger of being closed and the animals sold or put down. Because of his love for animals, he decided to save the ZOO and the animals. In June 2015, ZOO Tabor managed to reopen for the public and EKOSPOL became the general sponsor. Evžen Korec is also a chairman of the Cane Corso club Czech Republic.
Scientific and Research Activities
Evžen Korec is the co-author of 11 patents and more than 20 publications published in the leading international scientific journals. The most important publications can be found in the PubMed database.
He is currently a head of the research group at ZOO Tabor which focuses on genetics and longevity research in the Cane Corso dog breed and European Bison. The group is focused on anylysing DNA of long-lived dogs who have lived for 12 years or more to find genes related to longevity. Details can be found HERE. The aim of this research is to extend the average lifespan of Cane Corso dogs.
He also leads molecular-genetic research of European Bison in order to clarify the longevity of some individuals. The results of this research will be beneficial for the reintroduction of European Bison into Czech nature which is one of the main objectives of the ZOO Tabor.
Evžen Korec is a member of the Editorial Board of the US veterinary journal Approaches in Poultry, Dairy & Veterinary Sciences.
Scientific and Research Activities of the Cane Corso Breed
Together with his wife, Jana Korcová, he founded the Korec Corso kennel in 2016. With his research group, Korec Corso does research on genetics and longevity of this breed. The results of his studies are published in the world’s top scientific journals.
In collaboration with 72 Cane Corso kennels from 25 countries, the scientific group led by Evžen Korec determined for the first time the average lifespan of the Cane Corso breed. His team also proved for the first time in mammals that there is a relationship between the coat colour and the average lifespan.
Furthermore, in cooperation with leading experts MVDr. Roman Vitásek, Ph.D. (University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Brno) and MVDr. Petra Přinosilová, Ph.D. (Frozen Dogs s.r.o.) he accomplished the first successful insemination of frozen sperm in the Cane Corso breed in the Czech Republic.
The results of the Cane Corso research were published in the world’s leading journals and can be found here:
Four novel genes associated with longevity found in Cane corso purebred dogs
The First Confirmed Case of Dental-Skeletal-Retinal-Anomaly (DSRA) in the Cane Corso Italiano Dog Breed in the Czech Republic
Inheritance of coat colour in the cane Corso Italiano dog
Longevity of Cane Corso Italiano dog breed and its relationship with hair colour
Longevity of Purebred Dog Breeds
Segregation Analysis of Canine Hip Dysplasia in Cane Corso Italiano Dogs
The Lifespan of Humans and Animals Can Be Significantly Extended
Evžen Korec also regularly publishes popular educational articles about Cane Corso in Czech and foreign magazines. In total, about 50 articles were published in 9 countries around the world.
In addition to the Czech magazines, Sportovní kynologie, Můj pes, Dogsmagazin, Dog’s life, his articles were published also by Italian magazine Il mio cane, British magazines K9 and The Cane Corso Magazine, German magazine Partner Hund, Austrian magazines Planet Hund and Hundewelt, Russian magazines Droug and Zoo Afisha, Dutch magazine Dogzine, US magazine Pet Age and The Canine Chronicle and Indian Buddy life.
Pedagogical, Educational and Publishing Activities
Evžen Korec regularly lectured at the University of Economics in Prague. He is a supervisor of master degree students there.
He is the co-author of economic books about investing in real estate: Co je v domě, není pro mě! (Don’t Get Your Honey Where You Get Your Money), Koupě bytu pod lupou (Flat purchase Under the Magnifying Glass) a Pozemky ukrývají poklady (Land parcels are hidden treasure). In 2016, he also described his rescue of the Tábor ZOO in the book Jak jsem zachránil ZOO v Táboře (How I Saved the Tábor Zoo) and in 2023 he published a sequel of this book called Jak chráníme ohrožené druhy (How do we protect endangered speicies) . Evžen Korec is also a co-author of books Noční život v ZOO Tábor (Night life in the Tabor ZOO), Jak prodloužit život vašeho psa (How to Prolong Your Dog’s Life) and Chov psů (Dog Breeding – a Handbook for a Responsible Breeder). All these books are sold in the majority of bookshops in the Czech Republic. Dog-themed books have been translated into many languages and are sold in many countries around the world. Currently versions in English, German, Spanish and Russian are available for sale.
Evžen Korec is included in several encyclopaedias.