Expertise
- Food microbiology
- Genomics
- Metagenomics
- Bacterial stress response
Education
- Ph.D. in Microbiology, Clemson University
Professional Experiences
Postdoctoral associate, University of Maryland
Postdoctoral associate, University of California, Davis
Recent Publications (Google Scholar)
Huang, X., Toro, M., Reyes-Jara, A., Moreno-Switt, A.I., Adell, A.D., Oliveira, C.J.B., Bonelli, R.R., Gutiérrez. S., Álvarez, F.P., Rocha, A.D.L., Kraychete, G.B., Chen, Z., Grim, C.J., Brown, E.W., Bell, R.L., Meng, J. (2024). Integrative genome-centric metagenomics for surface water surveillance: elucidating microbiomes, antimicrobial resistance, and their associations. Water Research. In revision.
Chen, Z., Moreno-Switt, A.I., Reyes-Jara, A., Delgado-Suárez, E.J., Adell, A.D., Oliveira, C.J.B., Bonelli, R.R., Huang, X., Brown, E.W., Allard, M., Grim, C.J., Bell, R.L., Meng, J., Toro, M. (2024). A multicenter genomic epidemiological investigation in Brazil, Chile, and Mexico reveals the diversity and persistence of Salmonella populations in surface waters. mBio. In revision.
Chen, Z.*, Grim, C.J., Ramachandran, P., Meng, J. (2024). Advancing metagenome-assembled genome-based pathogen identification: Unraveling the power of long-read assembly algorithms in Oxford Nanopore sequencing. Microbiology Spectrum. In press.
Chen, Z.*, Toro, M., Moreno-Switt, A.I., Adell, A.D., Delgado-Suárez, E.J., Bonelli, R.R., Oliveira, C.J.B., Reyes-Jara, A., Huang, X., Albee, B., Grim, C.J., Allard, M., Tallent, S.M., Brown, E.W., Bell, R.L., Meng, J. (2024). Unveiling the genomic landscape of Salmonella enterica serotypes Typhimurium, Newport, and Infantis isolates from Latin American surface waters: A comparative analysis. Microbiology Spectrum. In press.
Cao, G., Zhao, S., Kuang, D., Hsu, C., Yin, L., Luo, Y., Chen, Z., Xu, X., Strain, E., McDermott, P., Allard, M., Brown, E., Meng, J., & Zheng, J. (2023). Geography shapes the genomics and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis isolated from humans. Scientific Reports, 13, 1331.
Chen, Z.* & Meng, J. (2022). Critical assessment of short-read assemblers for the metagenomic identification of foodborne and waterborne pathogens using simulated bacterial communities. Microorganisms, 10, 2416.
Chen, Z.* (2022). Application of chlorine dioxide-based hurdle technology to improve microbial food safety–A review. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 379, 109848.
Ballesteros-Nova, N. E., Sánchez, S., Steffani, J. L., Sierra, L.C., Chen, Z., Ruíz-López F. A., Rubio, M. S., Soberanis, O., Barona, F., Meng, J., Allard, M. W., & Delgado-Suárez, E. J. (2022). Genomic epidemiology of Salmonella enterica circulating in surface waters used in agriculture and aquaculture in Mexico. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 88, e02149-21.
Wang, Z., Zhu, T., Chen, Z., Meng, J., Simpson, D. J., & Gänzle, M. G. (2021). Genetic determinants of stress resistance in desiccated Salmonella enterica. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 87, e01683-21.
Chen, Z. & Meng, J. (2021). Persistence of Salmonella enterica and Enterococcus faecium NRRL B-2354 on baby spinach subjected to temperature abuse after exposure to sub-lethal stresses. Foods, 10, 2141.
Chen, Z., Erickson, D. L., & Meng, J. (2021). Polishing the Oxford Nanopore long-read assemblies of bacterial pathogens with Illumina short reads to improve genomic analyses. Genomics, 113, 1366-1377.
Chen, Z., Erickson, D. L., & Meng, J. (2020). Benchmarking long-read assemblers for genomic analyses of bacterial pathogens using Oxford Nanopore sequencing. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 21, 9161.
Chen, Z., Erickson, D. L., & Meng, J. (2020). Benchmarking hybrid assembly approaches for genomic analyses of bacterial pathogens using Illumina and Oxford Nanopore sequencing. BMC Genomics, 21, 1-21.
Kwon, H. J., Chen, Z., Evans, P., Meng, J., & Chen, Y. (2020). Characterization of mobile genetic elements using long-read sequencing for tracking Listeria monocytogenes from food processing environments. Pathogens, 9, 822.
Chen, Z., Kuang, D., Xu, X., González-Escalona, N., Erickson, D. L., Brown, E., & Meng, J. (2020). Genomic analyses of multidrug-resistant Salmonella Indiana, Typhimurium, and Enteritidis isolates using MinION and MiSeq sequencing technologies. PloS ONE, 15, e0235641.
Grant Awards
2022 – 2025. PI. “Control of Persistent Salmonella enterica on Foods with Prior Exposure to Sub-Lethal Food Production-Related Stresses Using a Hurdle Concept”, U.S. Department of Agriculture - National Institute of Food and Agriculture. $288,000.
2024 – 2027. Co-PI. "Production and Application of Biochar in Agricultural Practices at Small and Underserved Farms: Soil enhancement, Carbon Sequestration, and Productivity Improvement", U.S. Department of Agriculture - Natural Resources Conservation Service. $4,855,000.
Certificates
Certified Produce Safety Alliance Trainer
Certified HACCP Principles and GAPs for Fresh Produce Industries
Editorial Board Members
International Journal of Food Microbiology
Food Control
LWT - Food Science and Technology
Professional Members
International Association for Food Protection
American Society for Microbiology
