Sawsan Ammar, BVSc., MS, PhD
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Sawsan Ammar, BVSc., MS, PhD is a postdoctoral associate at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. Sawsan earned her veterinary and Masters degree from Sadat City University in Egypt. Sawsan then moved to the USA where she earned her PhD in 2019 working on Toxoplasma gondii in wild birds. Currently, Sawsan is a postdoctoral associate and Merck clinical parasitology resident at the University of Calgary under the supervision of Dr. John Gilleard.
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Five Questions with NCVP Merck Resident Dr. Sawsan Ammar
Tell us a little about your background. Where are you from, what are some of the defining experiences of your life?
I was born and raised in Egypt, and this is where I started my journey in science. I was always passionate about infectious diseases and the power that the little germ creatures can possess. I am also very passionate about exploring and traveling and this is why when I had the opportunity to study abroad, I was ready to fly! I headed to Tennessee where I worked on my PhD and postdoctoral training. Following this, I headed to Canada to start a new adventure where I was hosted by Dr. Gilleard to work on ectoparasites diagnostics and to do my clinical parasitology residency in Canada.
How did you initially become interested in veterinary medicine?
I always loved animals, however, we had no veterinarians in my family. My parents were professors at the college of agriculture and the rest of my family were medical doctors and engineers. Unconsciously, I developed love to science and mixed it with my love to animals and this is how I became veterinarian.
How did you become interested in parasitology? When did you know it would be your field?
I always laugh with colleagues that I became a parasitologist by luck but as soon as I was there, I knew I want to do this for the rest of my career. When I applied for my scholarship to study abroad, I was open to any field that is related to infectious diseases and diagnostics. At this time, I got in touch with Dr. Richard Gerhold at the university of Tennessee who was generous to host me in his lab to work on Toxoplasmosis in birds. My older sister was a medical parasitologist and she worked on Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women in Egypt and was very supportive. Since then, I was fascinated by parasites, and I was determined to become a clinical parasitologist.
What focus have you chosen for your residency? Where will your research efforts be targeted?
My research focus is using mass spectrometry to define specific protein patterns in various arthropod that is unique for each species with the hope of using this in the future as a diagnostic technique as an alternative to morphological and genetic identification.
What is your plan after your residency? What would you like to accomplish over the course of your career?
After the residency, I would like to continue in the field of veterinary parasitology diagnostics soon after getting my board certification. My parents were in academia so this is my comfort zone, but I am open to other fields and opportunities that the residency open for me.
Over the course of my career, I would like to set an example to veterinarians that your path does not have to be similar to others. I want them to know that we all have our own ways, and we can achieve our goals using these very different paths.
I was born and raised in Egypt, and this is where I started my journey in science. I was always passionate about infectious diseases and the power that the little germ creatures can possess. I am also very passionate about exploring and traveling and this is why when I had the opportunity to study abroad, I was ready to fly! I headed to Tennessee where I worked on my PhD and postdoctoral training. Following this, I headed to Canada to start a new adventure where I was hosted by Dr. Gilleard to work on ectoparasites diagnostics and to do my clinical parasitology residency in Canada.
How did you initially become interested in veterinary medicine?
I always loved animals, however, we had no veterinarians in my family. My parents were professors at the college of agriculture and the rest of my family were medical doctors and engineers. Unconsciously, I developed love to science and mixed it with my love to animals and this is how I became veterinarian.
How did you become interested in parasitology? When did you know it would be your field?
I always laugh with colleagues that I became a parasitologist by luck but as soon as I was there, I knew I want to do this for the rest of my career. When I applied for my scholarship to study abroad, I was open to any field that is related to infectious diseases and diagnostics. At this time, I got in touch with Dr. Richard Gerhold at the university of Tennessee who was generous to host me in his lab to work on Toxoplasmosis in birds. My older sister was a medical parasitologist and she worked on Toxoplasmosis in pregnant women in Egypt and was very supportive. Since then, I was fascinated by parasites, and I was determined to become a clinical parasitologist.
What focus have you chosen for your residency? Where will your research efforts be targeted?
My research focus is using mass spectrometry to define specific protein patterns in various arthropod that is unique for each species with the hope of using this in the future as a diagnostic technique as an alternative to morphological and genetic identification.
What is your plan after your residency? What would you like to accomplish over the course of your career?
After the residency, I would like to continue in the field of veterinary parasitology diagnostics soon after getting my board certification. My parents were in academia so this is my comfort zone, but I am open to other fields and opportunities that the residency open for me.
Over the course of my career, I would like to set an example to veterinarians that your path does not have to be similar to others. I want them to know that we all have our own ways, and we can achieve our goals using these very different paths.