Jayme Souza-Neto

Dr. Jayme Souza-Neto is an Assistant Professor at the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (KSVDL) and within the Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University. He serves as the Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Section Head at KSVDL and Assistant Director of the NIH COBRE-funded Molecular and Cell Biology Core, focusing on emerging zoonotic infectious diseases.

Dr. Souza-Neto earned his Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the State University of Northern Rio de Janeiro (UENF), a Ph.D. in Genetics from São Paulo State University (UNESP), and conducted postdoctoral research at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His career includes leadership during the Zika virus and SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks, where he contributed to international response committees (GLOPID-R Vector Control Working Group; MRC/CIHR/IDRC Zika panels) and coordinated the UNESP Genomic Surveillance Network for SARS-CoV-2 variant tracking.

His research emphasizes functional genomics of vector-host-pathogen interactions, the development of NGS-based diagnostic tools, and pathogen detection/surveillance for veterinary and public health applications. He has authored/co-authored highly cited articles in journals like Nature, Science, and PNAS, with recent work on viral genomics, mosquito microbiota, and zoonotic disease dynamics.

Dr. Souza-Neto has received competitive grants and awards, including the UENF Distinguished Alumnae recognition (2018) and Science and Technology in Society Forum Yong Leader designation (2014). His NGS services support both veterinary diagnostics and broader scientific initiatives like whole-genome sequencing and transcriptomics.

He is actively involved in mentoring and research support, with expertise in molecular biology cores and pandemic response frameworks. His work bridges veterinary diagnostics, zoonotic disease research, and global health security through genomic innovation.