Dr. Dimitrov joined TVMDL in 2019. Initially, he served as the virology and molecular diagnostics section head at TVMDL’s Amarillo laboratory. The following year he joined the College Station laboratory to serve as the virology section head. In 2021, he was promoted to the agency’s assistant director for microbiology and research and development.
In 2005, Dr. Dimitrov earned his master and doctoral degrees from Trakia University in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. After graduation, he trained at various agencies specializing in food safety, avian disease diagnostics, and molecular diagnostics of livestock diseases before continuing his education. In 2013, he earned a PhD from the National Diagnostic and Research Veterinary Medicine Institute in Sofia, Bulgaria. While there, his research focused on etiological and molecular-epidemiological studies of Newcastle disease.
Dr. Dimitrov came to TVMDL from the U.S. National Poultry Research Center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Athens, Georgia where he has served as a visiting scientist since 2014. During his stay at USDA, Dr. Dimitrov worked on development of rapid diagnostics methods that reflect the constant and continuous changes of the genetic makeup of virulent avian viruses and characterization of their pathogenicity. He also researched viral molecular epidemiology and evolution and has been extensively working on third- and fourth-generation sequencing methodologies and related bioinformatics. Among his past research interest is development of efficient live, inactivated, and recombinant vaccines to control avian viral diseases. Prior to his tenure at USDA, Dr. Dimitrov served as an assistant professor and laboratory director at the Regional Research and Diagnostic Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza in Aksakovo, Bulgaria. In addition to academic experience, Dr. Dimitrov has served in various veterinary capacities.
At TVMDL, Dr. Dimitrov oversees the agency’s bacteriology, molecular diagnostics, serology, and virology sections in addition to the agency’s research and development efforts.
