Zaki Sherif

Dr. Zaki Sherif is a Tenured Full Professor at Howard University College of Medicine and an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine through the Department of Oncology. He serves as Professor & Director of Graduate Studies in Biochemistry and is a Faculty Committee Member at the Center for Applied Data Science and Analytics.

Dr. Sherif pursued undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral, medical, and business studies and training at the University of Wisconsin, Howard University, Georgetown University, and Stanford University, creating a multidisciplinary foundation for his research career.

His research spans cancer biology, molecular genetics, and Long COVID studies, with particular focus on health disparities affecting minority populations. Dr. Sherif specializes in hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer), MASLD/MASH, and SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis. His work has discovered novel genetic mutations in breast cancer and identified biomarkers for early diagnosis of liver cancer, with recent emphasis on investigating health disparities and underlying causes of Long COVID.

Analysis of Dr. Sherif's recent publications reveals a strong focus on Long COVID research through the RECOVER Initiative, with particular attention to health disparities in minority populations. His work spans epidemiological studies, pathogenic mechanisms, immune responses, and clinical manifestations of post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with significant contributions to defining Long COVID and understanding its neurological and gastrointestinal impacts.

• Induction into the Hall of Fame Society for Science and Technology
• American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) recognition
• Howard University Provost's Distinguished Service to the Institution
• Georgetown University's Best Lecturer award
• Society of Ethiopians Established in Diaspora (SSED) honors
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) recognition

Dr. Sherif has mentored over five dozen MDs, PhDs, and Masters students over two decades and has brought millions in federal and private grant awards for his research. He serves on multiple NIH steering/oversight and review committees, as well as committees for the American Association for Cancer Research, National Science Foundation, American Cancer Society, and funding agencies in Canada, Europe, Qatar, and Egypt.

As an active community science lecturer for AAAS, Dr. Sherif focuses on cutting-edge research topics such as genomic sequencing, CRISPR, microbiome, and Long COVID. He has presented over 250 times at scientific conferences and serves on the editorial boards of six scientific journals, reviewing over four dozen research papers annually for more than twelve journal publications.