Vanessa Matthew-Belmar
Instructor, Pathobiology
Biography
Vanessa Matthew-Belmar is a leading expert in clinical and laboratory microbiology, veterinary bacteriology, and molecular biology. She has participated in over 30 published articles in peer-reviewed journals and has extensive experience presenting her work. Her current work includes significant contributions to ongoing research initiatives within the School of Veterinary Medicine at St. George’s University (SGU). She was appointed a Research Scientist at the Windward Islands Research & Education Foundation (WINDREF) in 2021.
She completed her reading of a BSc, Life Sciences at SGU (2013). She furthered her education by completing her Master of Science, Bacteriology (2016) and is a current PhD candidate, Virology.
Her primary research and professional interests revolve around the molecular diagnosis of zoonotic infectious diseases, encompassing both viral and bacterial pathogens. Vanessa has a proven track record of conducting research into zoonotic bacteria and emerging bacterial pathogens, analyzing samples from diverse sources including domestic and wildlife animals, as well as humans. She is also highly proficient in the molecular diagnosis of viral pathogens.
Vanessa’s doctoral research focuses on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a zoonotic virus from the Coronavirus genus that caused the 2019 pandemic. Her experience during this critical period includes her integral role on the SGU/WINDREF Testing team for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). Her technical proficiencies are broad, covering DNA and RNA extraction from various materials, DNA concentration determination via NANODROP spectrophotometry, PCR, gel electrophoresis, PCR product purification, and Fluorescent Antibody testing (dFA test). These honed proficiencies have assisted her with Rabies molecular diagnostics.
Contact Information
473-444-4175 ext. 3389
Areas of Interest
- Virology: Rabies diagnostics and surveillance (National diagnostician)
- Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
- Microbial Genetics
- Arthropod diseases (Tick and tickborne- diseases)
- Arthropod viruses (DenV, ChikV, ZikV)
- Clinical Microbiology
- Wastewater Surveillance
- Food Microbiology
Affiliations
- Grenada Allied Health Profession Council (Deputy Chair)
- Research Scientist, Windward Islands Research & Education Foundation (WINDREF) (2021–present)
- American Society for Microbiology (ASM)
- American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP)
- Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA)
Selected Publications
- Matthew-Belmar, V., Noel, T., Sharma, B., Yearwood, K., Fields, P., Sylvester, W., Noel, N., Chitan, E., Cudjoe, N., Alexander, V., Oura, C., Macpherson, C., & Alhassan, A. (2025). Molecular Evidence of SARS-CoV-2 Virus in Dogs and Cats from Grenada. Veterinary Sciences, 12(5), 455.
- Matthew-Bernard M, Farmer-Diaz K, Dolphin-Bond G, Matthew-Belmar V, Cheetham S, Mitchell K, Macpherson CNL, Ramos-Nino ME. Phenotypic Antibiotic Resistance Patterns of Escherichia coli Isolates from Clinical UTI Samples and Municipal Wastewater in a Grenadian Community. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 Jan 12;22(1):97. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22010097. PMID: 39857550; PMCID: PMC11765413.
- Bhumika Sharma, Roman R. Ganta , Diana Stone , Andy Alhassan, Marta Lanza-Perea, Vanessa Matthew Belmar, Inga Karasek , Elizabeth Cooksey , Catherine M. Butler, Kathry Gibson, and Melinda J. Wilkerson. Development of a Multiplex PCR and Magnetic DNA Capture Assay for Detecting Six Species Pathogens of the Genera Anaplasma and Ehrlichia in Canine, Bovine, Caprine and Ovine Blood Samples from Grenada, West Indies. Pathogens. 2021, 10. https://doi.org/10.3390
- R. Sharma, V. Matthew- Belmar, R. Nicholas-Thomas, G. Arya, B Holtslander, H. Hariharan, V. Amadi. Prevalence of Salmonella spp. in red-footed tortoises (Chelonoidis carbonaria) from Grenada, West Indies. International Journal of One Health, 6(1): 12-16, 2019
- V. Amadi, H. Hariharan, V. Matthew- Belmar, R. Nicholas-Thomas, C. DeAllie, R. Sharma. Occurrence of Yersinia entercolitica serotype 0:9 and Citrobacter freundii, two potential human pathogens in the throat of tropical pigs of Grenada origin. Bacterial Empire, Vol. 2.46-4,2019.
- V. Amadi, H. Hariharan, K.Tiwari, V. Matthew- Belmar, J. Haaan, S.Kumar Mor, S. Goyal and R. Sharma. Molecular Typing of Campylobacter species isolated from Healthy Indigenous Chickens in Grenada. British Microbiology, 21(6):1-8, 2017.
- V. Amadi, H. Hariharan, V. Matthew- Belmar, R. Nicholas-Thomas, R. Pinckney, R. Sharma and R. Johnson. Serovars and antimicrobial resistance of non-typhoidal Salmonella isolated from non-diarrhoeic dogs in Grenada, West Indies. Veterinary Medicine and Science, 2017.
- U. Zieger, S. Cheetham, S. Santana, L. Leiser- Miller, V. Matthew- Belmar, H. Goharriz and A. Fooks. Natural Exposure of bats in Grenada to Rabies virus. Infection Ecology & Epidemiology, 7:1, 2017
- Amadi, V. A., Matthew-Belmar, V., Subbarao, C., Kashoma, I., Rajashekara, G., Sharma, R., Hariharan, H., & Stone, D. (2017). Campylobacter species Isolated from Pigs in Grenada Exhibited Novel Clones: Genotypes and Antimicrobial Resistance Profiles of Sequence Types. Foodborne pathogens and disease, 14(7), 419-425. https://doi.org/10.1089/fpd.2016.2229
- Amadi, V.A., Hariharan, H., Arya, G., Matthew-Belmar, V., Nicholas-Thomas, R., Pinckney, R., Sharma, R. and Johnson, R. (2018), Serovars and antimicrobial resistance of non-typhoidal Salmonella isolated from non-diarrhoeic dogs in Grenada, West Indies. Vet Med Sci, 4: 26-34. https://doi.org/10.1002/vms3.84
Selected Projects
No projects available.
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