Meet the Team
Csaba Varga, DVM, M.Sc, Ph.D, DACVPM
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
cvarga@illinois.edu
Ph.D., Population Medicine, Epidemiology, University of Guelph, Ontario Veterinary College, Canada
M.Sc. Population Medicine, Epidemiology, University of Guelph, Ontario Veterinary College, Canada
M.Sc. Applied Veterinary Epidemiology, University of Agricultural Science and Veterinary Medicine, Romania
DVM, Veterinary Medicine, University of Agricultural Science and Veterinary Medicine, Romania
Current Lab Members
Mohammad Nasim Sohail, DVM, MVSc. Ph.D.
VISITING SCHOLAR
Nasim is a Veterinary Microbiologist working as a Visiting Scholar in the Department of Pathobiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine. His research interests include antimicrobial resistance, alternatives to antimicrobials, host-microbial interaction, and infectious diseases. Currently, his work focuses on antimicrobial use, and the prevailing situation of antimicrobial resistance in enteric bacteria.
Hammad Bajwa, DVM, M.Phil
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Hammad is a PhD student at the Department of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, UIUC. His work bridges the realms of Veterinary Medicine and Parasitology, focusing on Spatial Epidemiology and the challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) through a One Health approach. At the Varga Lab, he aims to contribute to innovative research in infectious diseases, benefitting humans, animals, and the environment alike.
Max Chung, M.S.
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Max is a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the Department of Pathobiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine. His interests include understanding the epidemiology of antimicrobial resistance of foodborne pathogens in food production systems through spatial and statistical modeling and bioinformatics.
Kien Dang
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Kien is a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the Department of Pathobiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine. His research interests include detecting and preventing antimicrobial resistance through the One Health approach.
Alumni
Isha Agrawal, BVSc&AH, PhD
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Isha completed her PhD from the Pathobiology Department, College of Veterinary Medicine, UIUC. Her research interests involve infectious disease epidemiology, spatial analysis, and disease prevention and control. She worked on assessing and improving biosecurity knowledge and practices among Illinois swine producers and veterinarians.
Setyo Yudhanto, BVSc & AH, MV.Sc, PhD
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Setyo is a “Fulbright Scholar” and a Ph.D. from the Pathobiology Department, College of Veterinary Medicine. His research interests are the epidemiology of infectious diseases, spatial analysis, and antimicrobial resistance. His current research is to assess antimicrobial resistance in companion animals with the aim of reducing treatment failures and the emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria.
Tarjani Bhatt, MPH Student
INTERN
Tarjani is an MPH student in the College of Applied Sciences, UIUC. Her research interests involve disease prevention and control and passionate about leveraging data to drive impactful healthcare solutions. She is currently working on Antimicrobial Resistance data on E.coli infection in humans, assessing temporal, regional, and demographic AMR trends in the US between 2010 and 2022.
Hamidreza Sodagari, DVM, PhD
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Hamid is a veterinary epidemiologist. His research focus areas include veterinary public health, food safety epidemiology, and antimicrobial resistance of foodborne pathogens. Currently, he is working on identifying the associations between antimicrobial use, antimicrobial resistance, and the development of antimicrobial resistance in enteric bacteria of poultry.
Barkha Sharma, BVSc & AH, MVSc, PhD
VISITING SCHOLAR
Barkha is an Associate Professor at the Department of Veterinary Epidemiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry, DUVASU, Mathura. Her research interest is infectious dieases epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance. At Varga Lab, she is involved in assessing the spatial distribution and clustering of the Lumpy Skin Disease Outbreak in Uttar Pradesh, India, 2021-22.
Rima Shrestha, BVSc & AH, MSc, PhD
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Rima is a veterinary epidemiologist trained in molecular epidemiology, One Health, disease preparedness and surveillance, and antimicrobial resistance. Currently, she is involved in identifying the associations among antimicrobial use, practices, and the development of antimicrobial resistance in enteric bacteria of poultry.