Division of Animal and Food Microbiology

Biography

Dr. Shaohua Zhao is a Senior Research Scientist at Division of Animal and Food Microbiology in Office of Research, FDA/Center for Veterinary Medicine. She received her veterinary degree from College of Veterinary Medicine, Guizhou University, China in 1982, and Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine (MPVM) in 1988 and Ph.D. in 1991 from University of California, Davis. She joined FDA as a research microbiologist in 1998.  Her primary responsibilities at CVM include conducting and coordinating research for National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) retail meat program with CDC and USDA, studying the mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, advancing genotyping technologies to support foodborne outbreak investigations, and foodborne diseases source attribution. 

Research

• Antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, and emerging resistance genes and their origin, evolution and dissemination 
• MDR plasmid biology, evolution, epidemiology and selective pressure associated with MDR development and dissemination in bacteria from different sources
• Advanced molecular subtyping technologies for outbreak investigations, foodborne disease source attribution and molecular epidemiology of MDR zoonotic foodborne pathogens 

Select Publications

Li, C., G. H. Tyson, C. H. Hsu, L. Harrison, E. Strain, T-T. Tran, G. E. Tillman, U. Dessai, P. F. McDermott and S. Zhao. 2021. Long-read sequencing reveals evolution and acquisition of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in Salmonella enterica. Frontiers in Microbiology. November 2021, Volume 12, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.777817

Harrison, L., S. Mukherjee, C. H. Hsu, S. Young, E. Strain, Q. Zhang, G. E. Tillman, C. Morales, J. Haro and S. Zhao. 2021. Genome MLST for Source Attribution of Campylobacter coli. Frontiers in Microbiology. July 2021. Vol.12, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.703890

Zhao, S., C. Li, C. H. Hsu, G. H. Tyson, E. Strain, H. Tate, T.T. Tran, J. Abbott, and P. F. McDermott. Comparative Genomic Analysis of Four Hundred Fifty Salmonella Strains Isolated from Diseased Animals. Genes 2020, 11, 1025. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/genes11091025

Tyson, G., C. Li, L. Harrison, G. Martin, C.H. Hsu, H. Tate, T.T. Tran, E. Strain, and S. Zhao. 2021. A Multidrug-Resistant Salmonella Infantis Clone Is Spreading and Recombining in the United States. Microb Drug Resist. 2021. Jun;27(6):792-799. https://doi.org/10.1089/mdr.2020.0389.

Kim, H.S., R. Rodriguez, S. Morris, S. Zhao, and J. Donato. 2020. Identification of a Novel Plasmid-Borne Gentamicin Resistance Gene in Non-typhoidal Salmonella Isolated from Retail Turkey. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. November 2020.  64:e00867-20. https://doi.org/10.1128/AAC.00867-20.

Hsu, C.H., L. Harrison, S. Mukherjee, E. Strain, P. McDermott, Q. Zhang, S. Zhao. 2020. Core Genome Multilocus Sequence Typing for Food Animal Source Attribution of Human Campylobacter jejuni. 2020. Pathogens. On line published: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pathogens9070532. 

Zhao, S., S. Mukherjee, C. H. Hsu, S. Yang, C. Li1, H. Tate, C.  Morales, J. Haro, S. Thitaram, G. Tillman, U. Dessai and P. McDermott. 2019. Genomic Analysis of Emerging Florfenicol Resistant Campylobacter coli isolated from the Cecal Contents of Cattle in the U.S. mSphere. May/June 2019 4(3): e00367-19. https://dol.org/10.1128/mSphere.00367-19.

Hsu, C. H., C. Li, M. Hoffmann, P. McDermott, J. Abbott, S. Ayers, G. Tyson, H. Tate, K. Yao, M. Allard, and S. Zhao. 2019.  Comparative Genomic Analysis of Multidrug-resistant Salmonella Dublin from Sick Cattle and Retail Beef.  Microbial Drug Resistance. DOI: 10.1089/mdr.2019.0045

Nguyen, M., S. W. Long, P. F. McDermott, R. J. Olsen, R. Olsen, R. L. Steven, G. H. Tyson, S. Zhao and J. J. Davis.  2019. Using Machine Learning to Predict Antimicrobial Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations and Associated Genomic Features for Nontyphoidal Salmonella. Journal of Clinical Microbiology. 57 (2). E01260-18. DOI: 10.1128/JCM.01260-18.

Tadesse, D., C. Li, S. Mukherjee, C. H. Hsu, S. Bodies-Jones, S. Gaines, C. Kabera, G. Loneragan, M. Torrence, D. Harhay, P. McDermott, and S. Zhao. 2018.  Whole Genome Sequence Analysis of CTX-M Containing Escherichia coli Isolates from Retail Meats and Cattle in the United States. Microb Drug Resist. 24 (7):939-948. DOI:10.1089/mdr.2018.0206

Zhao, S., S. Mukherjee, C.  Li, S. B. Jones, S. Young and P. F. McDermott. 2018. Cloning and Expression of Novel Aminoglycoside Phosphotransferase Genes from Campylobacter and Their Role in the Resistance to Six Aminoglycosides. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2018. 62 (1):e01682-17.