MARYSABEL-MENDEZ-ACEVEDO
EDUCATION
· M.S. in Food Science, The Pennsylvania State University (2023)
· B.S. in Biology with an emphasis in Biomedical Sciences, University of Puerto Rico Aguadilla (2018)
RESEARCH INTERESTS
I am currently investigating the optimal combination of environmentally isolated phages to effectively mitigate bacterial blotch disease in white button mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus), caused by various Pseudomonas species, including Pseudomonas tolaasii. In the next phase, I will evaluate the efficacy of different bacteriocins against Pseudomonas species that contribute to blotch disease in A. bisporus.
GRANTS AND AWARDS
· SACNAS Travel Scholarship Award, 2023
· Scholarship NNF USDA-NIFA-2021-38420-34066, 2021-2023
· Second place in a poster presentation, Tri-beta District Symposium at the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, 2018
· Scholarship ECaFSS USDA-NIFA-HIS USDA-2016-3842-25541, 2016-2018
Publications
· Voloshchuk, O., Rolon L. M., Bartlett, K. V., Méndez Acevedo M., et al. (2025). ‘Pseudomonadaceae increased the tolerance of listeria monocytogenes to sanitizers in multi-species biofilms’, Food Microbiology, 128, p. 104687. doi:10.1016/j.fm.2024.104687.
· Rolon, M.L., Méndez Acevedo, M., et al. (2025). ‘Impact of improved sanitation standard operating procedures on microbial populations at three tree fruit packing facilities’, Journal of Food Protection, 88(1), p. 100436. doi:10.1016/j.jfp.2024.100436.
· Méndez Acevedo, M., et al. (2024) ‘Sanitizer resistance and persistence of Listeria monocytogenes isolates in tree fruit packing facilities’, Journal of Food Protection, 87(10), p. 100354. doi:10.1016/j.jfp.2024.100354.
· Wei, X., Hassen, A., McWilliams, K. Pietrzen, K., Chung T., Méndez Acevedo, M., et al. (2024). Genomic characterization of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria innocua isolated from milk and dairy samples in Ethiopia. BMC Genom Data 25, 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12863-024-01195-0
· Méndez Acevedo, M., Carroll, L., Mukherjee, M., Mills, E., Xiaoli, L., Dudley, E., & Kovac, J. (2020). Novel Effective Bacillus cereus Group Species “Bacillus clarus” Is Represented by Antibiotic-Producing Strain ATCC 21929 Isolated from Soil. Msphere, 5(6). doi: 10.1128/msphere.00882-20