Ed Topp Ph.D.

Image Ed Topp
Principal Research Scientist

Environmental microbiology and chemistry

    Current research and/or projects

    Assessment and management of environmental and human health risks associated with agricultural organic fertilizers of animal, poultry and human origin: Fate and impacts of pharmaceuticals, microbial pathogens, and antibiotic resistant bacteria in food animal and crop production systems.

    Research and/or project statements

    -Mitigating antimicrobial resistance in food production systems.

    -Genomics Research and Development Initiative on antimicrobial resistance [GRDI-AMR]

    Professional activities / interests

    Member, Joint Programming Initiative on AMR (JPIAMR) Science Advisory Board (2019-)

    Chair, FAO/WHO expert committee on antimicrobial resistance, crops and the environment (Rome, June 2018)

    Member, FAO/WHO roster of experts on foodborne antimicrobial resistance (2019-)

    Member, European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) working group concerning “The role of the environment in the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) through the food chain” (2019-20)

    Member Agence nationale de sécurité sanitaire de l’alimentation, de l’environnement et du travail (ANSES, France)  expertise collective : « Antibiorésistance et environnement - État et causes possibles de la contamination des milieux en France par les antibiotiques et par les bactéries résistantes aux antibiotiques et les supports génétiques de la résistance aux antibiotiques » (2019-2021)

    Education and awards

    Ph.D., Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, USA

    M.Sc., Department of Microbiology, Macdonald College of McGill University, Canada

    B.Sc. (Agriculture). Department of Microbiology, Macdonald College of McGill University, Canada

    Elected ‘Membre Correspondant’ of the Académie d'Agriculture de France 2016

    Government of Canada Public Service Award of Excellence for Scientific Contribution 2016

    AAFC Gold Harvest award for Career Achievement 2015

    Water and Environment Association of Ontario Research Excellence Award 2014

    NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship 1984

    Busch Fellowship, The Graduate School, University of Minnesota 1984

    Walter M. Stewart Award, The Faculty of Agriculture, McGill University 1983

    Key publications

    1. Zaidi, S., Zaheer, R., Poulin-Laprade, D., Scott, A., Diarra, M. S., Church, D., Topp, E., Van Domselaar, G., Zovoilis., A. and McAllister T.A. 2023. Comparative Genomic investigation of Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis across One-Health Sectors. AMR-One Health Consortium Second Annual Retreat. Banff Alberta

      2022 - View publication details

    2. Arcand, Y., Bittman, S., Britten, M., Champagne, C., Daneshfar, B., David, S., Davidson, A., Derdall, E. Drury, C., Eden, J., Handyside, P., Hung, Y., Javorek, S., Jiang, Y., Jingui, Y., Jordan, C., Joosse, P., Li, S., McAuley, E., McNairn, H., MacDonald, D., Pacheco, A., Powers, J., Reid, K., Smith, E. L., Topp, E., Vanrobaeys, J., Villeneuve, S., Wilson, H., Yang, J. Agricultural Land Use. Synthesis of Science. Canada Water Agency Report. Freshwater Science Assessment-Line of Inquiry. Nov. 20, 2020.

      2020 - View publication details

    3. Zambri, M., Cloutier, M., Adam, Z., Lapen, D.R., Wilkes, G., Sunohara, M., Topp, E., Talbot, G., Khan, I.U.H. (2019). Novel virulence, antibiotic resistance and toxin gene-specific PCR-based assays for rapid pathogenicity assessment of Arcobacter faecis and Arcobacter lanthieri. BMC Microbiology, [online] 19(1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12866-018-1357-7

      2019 - View publication details

    4. Khan, I.U.H., Miltenburg, M.G., Cloutier, M., Islam, O., Lapen, D.R., Wilkes, G., Talbot, G., Topp, E. 2018. Quantitative assessment of agricultural water quality, human and animal feces for prevalence of Arcobacter faecis and A. lanthieri. ASM (American Society for Microbiology) Microbe 2018. June 07-11, 2018, Atlanta, GA.

      2018 - View publication details

    5. Goulas, A., Sabourin, L., Asghar, F., Haudin, C.S., Benoit, P., Topp, E. (2018). Explaining the accelerated degradation of ciprofloxacin, sulfamethazine, and erythromycin in different soil exposure scenarios by their aqueous extractability. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, [online] 25(16), 16236-16245. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1834-4

      2018 - View publication details

    6. Liu, L., Cloutier, M., Craiovan, E., Edwards, M., Frey, S.K., Gottschall, N., Lapen, D.R., Sunohara, M., Topp, E., Khan, I.U.H. (2018). Quantitative real-time PCR-based assessment of tile drainage management influences on bacterial pathogens in tile drainage and groundwater. Science of the Total Environment, [online] 624 1586-1597. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.10.200

      2018 - View publication details

    7. Chen, W., Wilkes, G., Khan, I.U.H., Pintar, K.D.M., Thomas, J.L., Lévesque, C.A., Chapados, J.T., Topp, E., Lapen, D.R. (2018). Aquatic bacterial communities associated with land use and environmental factors in agricultural landscapes using a metabarcoding approach. Frontiers in Microbiology, [online] 9 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2018.02301

      2018 - View publication details

    8. Fock-Chow-Tho, D., Topp, E., Ibeagha-Awemu, E.A., Bissonnette, N. (2017). Comparison of commercial DNA extraction kits and quantitative PCR systems for better sensitivity in detecting the causative agent of paratuberculosis in dairy cow fecal samples. Journal of Dairy Science (JDS), [online] 100(1), 572-581. http://dx.doi.org/10.3168/jds.2016-11384

      2017 - View publication details

    9. Jones, T.H., Brassard, J., Topp, E., Wilkes, G., Lapen, D.R. (2017). Waterborne viruses and F-specific coliphages in mixed-use watersheds: Microbial associations, host specificities, and affinities with environmental/land use factors. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, [online] 83(3), http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/AEM.02763-16

      2017 - View publication details

    10. Fock-Chow-Tho, D., Topp, E., Ibeagha-Awemu, E.M., and Bissonnette, N. (2016). "Comparison of commercial DNA extraction and QPCR systems for a better sensitivity in detecting the causative paratuberculosis pathogen in dairy cow fecal samples.", 13th International Colloquium on Paratuberculosis, Nantes, France, 19-24 June, 2016, P-03.18, pp. 98. (Abstract)

      2016 - View publication details

    11. Simmons, K., Islam, R., Rempel, H., Block, G.S., Topp, E., and Diarra, M.S. (2016 in press). "Antimicrobial Resistance of Escherichia fergusonii Isolated from Broiler Chickens.", Journal of Food Protection.

      2016 - View publication details

    12. Sunohara, M.D., Gottschall, N., Craiovan, E., Wilkes, G., Topp, E., Frey, S.K., Lapen, D.R. (2016). Controlling tile drainage during the growing season in Eastern Canada to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus, and bacteria loading to surface water. Agricultural Water Management, [online] 178 159-170. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2016.08.030

      2016 - View publication details

    13. Fernando, D.M., Khan, I.U.H., Patidar, R., Lapen, D.R., Talbot, G., Topp, E., Kumar, A. (2016). Isolation and characterization of acinetobacter baumannii recovered from campylobacter selective medium. Frontiers in Microbiology, [online] 7(NOV), http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2016.01871

      2016 - View publication details

    14. Topp, E., Irwin, R., McAllister, T.A., Lessard, M., Joensuu, J.J., Kolotilin, I., Conrad, U., Stöger, E., Mor, T., Warzecha, H., Hall, J.C., McLean, M.D, Cox, E., Devriendt, B., Potter, A., Depicker, A., Virdi, V., Holbrook, L., Doshi, K., Dussault, M., Friendship, R.M., Yarosh, O., Yoo, H.S., MacDonald, J.D., and Menassa, R. (2016). "The case for plant-made veterinary immunotherapeutics.", Biotechnology Advances. doi : 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2016.02.007

      2016 - View publication details

    15. Coors, A., Edwards, M., Lorenz, P., Römbke, J., Schmelz, R.M., Topp, E., Waszak, K., Wilkes, G., Lapen, D.R. (2016). Biosolids applied to agricultural land: Influence on structural and functional endpoints of soil fauna on a short- and long-term scale. Science of the Total Environment, [online] 562 312-326. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.03.226

      2016 - View publication details

    16. Topp, E., Renaud, J., Sumarah, M., Sabourin, L. (2016). Reduced persistence of the macrolide antibiotics erythromycin, clarithromycin and azithromycin in agricultural soil following several years of exposure in the field. Science of the Total Environment, [online] 562 136-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.03.210

      2016 - View publication details

    17. Fock-Chow-Tho, D. E. Topp, E. Ibeagha-Awemu, and N. Bissonnette. Comparison of commercial DNA extraction and QPCR systems for a better sensitivity in detecting the causative paratuberculosis pathogen in dairy cow fecal samples. International Congress on Paratuberculosis, Nantes, France, June 19-24th.

      2016 - View publication details

    18. Holman, D.B., Hao, X., Topp, E., Yang, H.E., Alexander, T.W. (2016). Effect of co-composting cattle manure with construction and demolition waste on the archaeal, bacterial, and fungal microbiota, and on antimicrobial resistance determinants. PLoS ONE, [online] 11(6), 1-21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0157539

      2016 - View publication details

    19. Laprade, N., Cloutier, M., Lapen, D.R., Topp, E., Wilkes, G., Villemur, R., Khan, I.U.H. (2016). Detection of virulence, antibiotic resistance and toxin (VAT) genes in Campylobacter species using newly developed multiplex PCR assays. Journal of Microbiological Methods, [online] 124 41-47. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mimet.2016.03.009

      2016 - View publication details

    20. Rahube, T.O., Marti, R., Scott, A., Tien, Y.C., Murray, R., Sabourin, L., Duenk, P., Lapen, D.R., Topp, E. (2016). Persistence of antibiotic resistance and plasmid-associated genes in soil following application of sewage sludge and abundance on vegetables at harvest. Canadian Journal of Microbiology, [online] 62(7), 600-607. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjm-2016-0034

      2016 - View publication details

    Research facility

    1391 Sandford Street
    London, ON N5V 4T3
    Canada

    Affiliations

    Adjunct, University of Western Ontario, Department of Biology.

    Special Graduate Faculty, University of Guelph, Ontario Veterinary College, Department of Pathobiology

    Canadian Society of Microbiologists (CSM, President 2010-2011).

    Canadian Soil Science Society (CSSS)

    American Society for Microbiology (ASM).

    International Society for Microbial Ecology (ISME).

    Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC).

    Soil Science Society of America (SSSA).

    Language

    English
    French