Russell, Shannon

Russell, Shannon

PhD

Academic Rank(s): Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC; Senior Scientist, BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) Public Health Laboratory

Affiliation(s): BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) Public Health Laboratory

Research and Scholarly Interests: Genomic epidemiology, pathogen surveillance, One Health, antimicrobial resistance, IPAC, and outbreak response.

Clinical Interests: Public health microbiology, genomic diagnostics, outbreak investigation, antimicrobial-resistant organisms, and healthcare-associated infections

shannon.russell@bccdc.ca

Short Bio
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Dr. Shannon Russell is a Senior Scientist in Translational Genomics at the BCCDC Public Health Laboratory and a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Russell’s work focuses on the development of tools and applications of genomic epidemiology to support One Health and infection prevention and control (IPAC) strategies, with a focus on emerging pathogens (e.g., highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses, mpox virus), antimicrobial-resistant organisms (e.g., carbapenemase-producing organisms), and hospital-associated infections (e.g., MRSA).

  She leads and collaborates on integrated genomic surveillance initiatives across human and animal health sectors in British Columbia and nationally. Her work aims to translate genomics data into actionable intelligence that informs outbreak detection, response, and mitigation, as well as public health and IPAC policy, strengthening cross-sectoral partnerships and health system preparedness.

BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) Profile

Academic
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Academic Background

  • PhD (Microbiology and Immunology), University of British Columbia (2008–2014)
  • BSc (Biochemistry and Microbiology), University of Victoria (2002–2007)

Awards and Recognition

  • Excellence in Research – (within 7 years of appointment). Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC. (2026)

Publications

PubMed

List of selected publications:

  • Himsworth CG, Caleta JM, Jassem AN, Yang KC, Zlosnik JEA, Tyson JR, Wilson L, Kuchinski KS, Giacinti J, Willie M, Redford TD, Winchester M, Thacker C, Berhane Y, Burns T, Prystajecky N, and Russell SL. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) in Wild Birds and a Human, British Columbia, 2024. Emerg Infect Dis. 2025 Jun; 31(6). doi:10.3201/eid3106.241862.
  • Mansour S, Woo S, Kopetzky J, Russell SL, Bishay F, Hon B, Byrne L, Prystajecky N, Hoang L. Enhancing surveillance of carbapenemase-producing organisms through wastewater testing. Scientific Reports. 2025 Dec 20;16(1):2835.
  • Oltean H, Lipton B, Black A, Snekvik K, Haman K, Buswell M, Baines A, Rabinowitz P, Russell SL, Shadomy S, Ria R, Rekant S, Lindquist S, Baseman J. Developing a one health data integration framework focused on real-time pathogen surveillance and applied genomic epidemiology. One Health Outlook. 2025;7:10.
  • Jassem A, Roberts A, Tyson J, Zlosnik J, Russell SL, Caleta J, Eckbo E, Gao R, Chestley T, Grant J, Uyeki T, Prystajecky N, Himsworth C, MacBain E, Ranadheera C, Li L, Hoang L, Bastien N, Goldfarb D. Critical Illness in an Adolescent with Influenza A(H5N1). N Engl J Med. 2024 Dec;392(9):927–929. doi:10.1056/NEJMc2415890.
  • Russell SL*, Andrew C*, Yang K, Coombe M, McGreggor G, Redford T, Jassem A, Zlosnik J, Kuchinski K, Palmer J, Tyson J, Fjell C, Willie M, Winchester M, Wilson L, Berhane Y, Thacker C, Harms J, Soos C, Burns T, Prystajecky N, Himsworth C. Descriptive epidemiology and phylogenetic analysis of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b in British Columbia (B.C.) and The Yukon, Canada, September 2022 to June 2023. Emerg Microb Infect. 2024 Dec;13(1):2392667. doi:10.1080/22221751.2024.2392667.
  • Russell SL*, Andrew C*, Coombe M, Zlosnik J, Kuchinski K, Lee T, Tsang F, Tyson J, Caleta J, Fjell C, Berhane Y, Bowes V, Redford T, Thacker C, Wilson L, Harms J, Jassem A, Prystajecky N, Himsworth C. Descriptive epidemiology and phylodynamics of the ‘first wave’ of an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b) in British Columbia and the Yukon, Canada, April to September 2022. Trans Emerg Dis. 2024 Feb 29;2024:1–18. doi:10.1155/2024/2327939.
  • Russell SL, Klaver BRA, Harrigan SP, Kamelian K, Tyson J, Hoang L, Taylor M, Sander B, Mishra S, Prystajecky N, Janjua, Zlosnik JEA, Sbihi H. Clinical severity of Omicron subvariants BA.1, BA.2, and BA.5 in a population-based cohort study in British Columbia, Canada. Journal of Medical Virology. 2023;95(1):e28423. doi:10.1002/jmv.28423.
Research
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Research Interest

Dr. Russell’s research focuses on the development of real-time pathogen surveillance and applied genomic epidemiology approaches to inform One Health and IPAC strategies for emerging pathogens, antimicrobial-resistant organisms, and healthcare-associated infections.

Clinical Service

Dr. Russell’s research focuses on the development of real-time pathogen surveillance and applied genomic epidemiology approaches to inform One In my clinical service role, I translate research into practice by delivering genomic tools and reports that directly enable outbreak detection and response for public health and frontline teams.

Current Projects In My Lab Include

  • Carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPO)
  • Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
  • Mpox
  • Seasonal influenza and avian influenza viruses
  • Salmonella enterica
  • Other healthcare-associated infections
Teaching
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Teaching Interest

Courses include:

  • Human Bacterial Infections (PATH 417)
  • Bacteriology, Mycology, Virology & Parasitology (PATH 315/316; previously PATH 327)
  • Microbial Infections (PATH 722)