Dr. Hezhao Ji
 
Adjunct Professor, Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Manitoba, Research Scientist, National HIV & Retrovirology Laboratories, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada 

Degrees: M.D. (Hebei, 1993); M.Sc. Medical Immunology (Hebei, 1996); Ph.D. Medical Microbiology & Infectious diseases (Manitoba, 2007)

Mailing Address: Room 3170, LCDC Building
100 Eglantine Driveway, PL0603B, Tunney's Pasture,
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A0K9

Tel: (613) 952-9451 Fax: (613) 957-1163
E-mail: hezhao_ji@phac-aspc.gc.ca

Research Interests:
Development of new methodologies for HIV diagnosis and HIV drug resistance testing; HIV drug resistance surveillance; HIV viral evolution and molecular HIV epidemiology; Applications of next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies in HIV/AIDS.

Selected Publications:  

  1. Ji H, Li Y, Graham M, Liang B, Pilon R, MacPherson P, Van Domselaar G,Sandstrom P and Brooks J.Pyrosequencing Dried Blood Spots Reveals Differences in HIV Drug Resistance between Treatment Naïve and Experienced Patients. 2012. PLoS ONE (Revision submitted).
  2. Ji H, Li Y, Graham M, Liang B, Tyler S, Merks H, Van Domselaar G, Sandstrom P and Brooks J.  Low abundance drug resistance variants in transmitted HIV drug resistance surveillance specimens identified using tagged pooled pyrosequencing. J Virol Methods 2012. doi: pii: S0166-0934 (12) 00382-5. 10.1016 / j.jviromet.2012.10.018. [Epub ahead of print);
  3. Liang B, Luo M, Scott-Herridge J, Semeniuk C, Mendoza M, Capina R, Sherdown B,  Ji H, Kimani J,  Ball TB, Van Domselaar G, Graham M, Tyler S, Jones S and Plummer FA.  A Comparison of Parallel Pyrosequencing and Sanger Clone-Based Sequencing and Its Impact on the Characterization of the Genetic Diversity of HIV-1. PLoS ONE 2011. 6(10): e26745.
  4. Ji H, Li Y, Graham M, Liang B, Pilon R, Tyson S, Peters G, Tyler S, Merks H, Bertagnolio S, Luis Soto-Ramirez L, Sandstrom P and Brooks J. Next Generation Sequencing of Dried Blood Spot Specimens: A Novel Approach to HIV Drug Resistance Surveillance. Antivir Ther2011;16(6):871-8
  5. Ji H, Massé N, Tyler S, Liang B, Merks H, Graham M, Sandstrom P and Brooks B. HIV Drug Resistance Surveillance Using Pooled Pyrosequencing. PLoS ONE  2010. 5(2):e9263.
  6. Ji H, Ball T B, Liang B B, Ao Z, Kimani J, Yao X and Plummer F A.  Reduced HIV-1 long terminal repeat transcription in subjects with protective interferon regulatory factor-1 genotype: A potential mechanism mediating resistance to infection by HIV-1. Scand J Infect Dis2010. 42(5):389~394.
  7. Ji H, Ball T.B, Liang B B, Kimani J and Plummer F A.  Human Interferon Regulatory Factor-1 gene and its promoter sequences revealed by population-based complete gene sequencing. DNA Seq2008 Jun; 19 (3): 326-31.
  8. Ball T. B, Ji H, Kimani J, Hill A, Marlin C and Plummer F. Interferon regulatory factor 1: A novel determinant of resistance to infection by Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1 in high exposed uninfected sex-workers.AIDS2007; 31;21(9):1091-101.
  9. Ji H, Ball T. B, Kimani J and Plummer F.  Novel Interferon Regulatory Factor-1 Polymorphisms in a Kenyan Population Revealed by Complete Gene Sequencing. (2004). J Hum Genet2004; 49: 528-535.
  10. Zhong G, Fan P, Ji H, et al. Identification of a chlamydia protease-like activity factor responsible for the degradation of host transcription factors. J Exp Med2001; 193(8): 935-942.
  11. Li L, Hu H, Ji H, et al. Chlamydia pneumoniae infection significantly exacerbates aortic antherosclerosis in an LDLR-/- mouse model within six months. Mol Cell Biochem2000; 215(1-2): 123-128.
  12. Zhong G, Liu L, Fan T, Fan P and Ji H. Degradation of transcription factor RFX-5 during the inhibition of both constitutive and Interferon -inducible Major Histocompatibility Complex Class I expression in chlamydia-infected cells.J Exp Med2000; 191(9): 1525-34.