Director: Carl E. Cerniglia, Ph.D.

The Division of Microbiology at NCTR serves a multipurpose function with specialized expertise to perform fundamental and applied research in microbiology. The Division of Microbiology also responds to microbial surveillance and diagnostic needs for research projects within NCTR and FDA.  The Division of Microbiology has a multidisciplinary staff including 14 research scientists and 17 research support staff, postdoctoral fellows, undergraduate and graduate students, visiting scientists, and program support specialists. The Microbiology Division has the staff, the know-how, and the facilities to help address the scientific challenges encountered by FDA and other government organizations. Some examples of the research projects within the Division and collaborative research with scientists from other NCTR Divisions, FDA Centers, academic institutions, and industry are described below. Projects are based on FDA priorities and programmatic expertise. The research program is divided into five focal areas:

1.  food safety, food biosecurity, and methods development
2.  antimicrobial resistance
3.  gastrointestinal microbiology and host interactions
4.  environmental biotechnology
5.  microbiological surveillance and diagnostic support of research.

The NCTR Research Plans and Accomplishments Document contains information on the latest accomplishments and plans for the Division of Microbiology as well as project and publication listings.