UGA Center for Food Safety Webinar Series

Systems based "One Health" approach to understand the complex dynamics of antimicrobial resistance challenge globally

Guest speaker: Prof. Siddhartha “Sid” Thakur, Professor of Molecular Epidemiology, Director of Global Health, CVM, Director of Global Health, Department of Population Health and Pathobiology at NC State University

Hosted by Dr. Issmat Kassem, Assistant Professor

Dr. Siddhartha Thakur, BVSc, MVSc, PhD, is the Executive Director of Global One Health Academy and Professor of Molecular Epidemiology in the College of Veterinary Medicine, NC State. In his current role, Dr. Thakur is responsible for expanding NC State’s One Health research and education efforts, as well as increasing opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students, with a focus on interdisciplinary project-based experiences, and the development of evidence-based recommendations for tackling current and future global threats. He is an NC State Chancellor faculty scholar. He received his Degree in Veterinary Medicine and Master of Veterinary Public Health from India, and his Ph.D. from NC State.

His research focus is to fill critical knowledge gaps that exist in the complex chain of events leading to the development, dissemination and persistence of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) bacterial foodborne pathogens at the interface of human, animal, and the environment. Dr. Thakur`s research is centered on two predominant themes. The first revolves around understanding the phenotypic and genotypic similarity and/or diversity of AMR bacterial strains reported in animals and humans. This involves characterizing and elucidating the mechanisms of AMR at the molecular level, analyzing DNA fingerprint patterns, and determining the risk factors that predispose the animals and humans to infections by these strains. The second theme focuses on using phylogenetics to study the evolution of drug-resistant bacterial strains at the population level. In this, molecular approaches are undertaken to analyze pathogen evolution on an evolutionary scale.

He has won numerous awards, including the Larry Beuchat Young Researcher Award by the International Association for Food Protection and the Outstanding Global Engagement award by NC State. Dr. Thakur has authored or co-authored 80 peer-reviewed publications, and edited two books on Food Safety.