Cindy M Liu
Cindy M Liu
M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health, and of Microbiology, Immunology, and Tropical Medicine
Full-time
School: Milken Institute School of Public Health
Department: Environmental and Occupational Health
Contact:
Email:
Cindy M Liu
Office Phone:
202-994-0263
Science & Engineering Hall
800 22nd Street, NW 7th Floor
Washington DC 20052
Cindy M. Liu, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Chief Medical Officer of Antibiotic Resistance Action Center at the George Washington Milken Institute School of Public Health in Washington D.C. Dr. Liu also has a courtesy appointment in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Tropical Medicine in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Dr. Liu is trained in molecular microbiology, microbial ecology, clinical pathology (laboratory medicine), and clinical epidemiology. It is her career mission to help medicine to shift infectious disease and public health practices based on our understanding of the human microbiome, and importantly, to move beyond empiric antibiotic use in order to combat antibiotic resistance.
To achieve her career mission, Dr. Liu works on several research projects that are funded through the NIH and other governmental agencies and foundations. Her research projects are highly multidisciplinary and involves team members and collaborators that range from molecular microbiologists, bioinformaticists, immunologists, clinicians, and epidemiologists to individuals working on communications and behavioral research as well.
Dr. Liu’s team uses innovative, multi-disciplinary methods to:
1. Evaluate the role of host-associated microbial communities on pathogen transmission and on host susceptibility to colonization and infection by pathogens ranging from HIV, Staphylococcus aureus, to extra-intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC);
2. Determine the contribution of environmental reservoirs (particularly of food and food animals) to the colonization and infection by antibiotic-resistant pathogens in humans; and
3. Develop novel strategies (such as probiotics) for the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases.
EXPERTISE:
Environmental Health Policy
Epidemiology
EDUCATION:
MD Residency in Clinical Pathology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (2015)
PhD, Biology, Department of Biology, Northern Arizona University (2013)
MD, New York University School of Medicine (2007)
MPH, Epidemiology/Biostatistics Methods in Public Health and Clinical Research, The Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health (2006)
BA, International Studies with International Health Concentration, The Johns Hopkins University, School of Arts and Sciences
INSTITUTES AND CENTERS:
Dr. Liu is the Chief Medical Officer of Antibiotic Resistance Action Center at the George Washington Milken Institute School of Public Health
RESEARCH:
As the Chief Medical Officer of the Antibiotic Resistance Action Center at George Washington, a recent addition to Dr. Liu’s research foci is on outpatient antimicrobial stewardship. This project seeks to improve antimicrobial stewardship in retail healthcare sectors (e.g., urgent care, telemedicine, etc.) through a collaboration with industrial partners, the Urgent Care Association of America, and Dr. Rana Hamdy, the Director of Antimicrobial Stewardship at Children's National Medical Center.
PUBLICATIONS:
- Liu CM, Prodger JL, Tobian AAR, Abraham A, Kigozi G, Hungate BA, Aziz M, Nalugoda F, Sariya S, Serwadda D, Kaul R, Gray RH, Price LB. Penile anaerobic dysbiosis: a novel risk factor for HIV infection. mBio 2017 Jul 25;8(4). pii: e00996-17. doi: 10.1128/mBio.00996-17.
- Liu CM, Tobian AA, Kigozi G, Prodger J, Serwadda D, Nalugoda F, Kighoma N, Price LB, Gray RH. The PrePex male circumcision device and genital anaerobic bacterial overgrowth in Rakai, Uganda. J Infect Dis. 2016 Aug 15;214(4):595-8.
- Liu CM, Hungate BA, Tobian AA, Ravel J, Prodger JL, Serwadda D, Kigozi G, Galiwango RM, Nalugoda F, Keim P, Wawer MJ, Price LB, Gray RH. Penile microbiota and female partner bacterial vaginosis in Rakai, Uganda. mBio. 2015 June:6(3): e00589-15.
- Liu CM, Price LB, Hungate, BA, Abraham A, Larsen LA, Christensen K, Stegger M, Skov R, Andersen PS. Staphylococcus aureus and the ecology of the nasal microbiome. Sci Adv. 2015 June;1(5): e1400216.
- Liu CM, Hungate BA, Tobian AA, Serwadda D, Ravel J, Lester R, Kigozi G, Aziz M, Galiwango RM, Nalugoda F, Contente-Cuomo TL, Wawer MJ, Keim P, Gray RH, Price LB. Male circumcision significantly reduces prevalence and load of genital anaerobic bacteria. mBio. 2013 Apr 16;4(2):e00076.