Golden State Today

Christine Kreuder Johnson, a wildlife veterinarian, turned to UC Davis in the 1990s when she encountered unexplained die-offs of birds and sea turtles in Florida. Previously working with racehorses, Johnson was drawn to population-level puzzles at a national wildlife refuge but needed assistance.

“I had all the puzzle pieces, but I couldn’t put it together,” she said.

UC Davis is home to over 50 faculty members who are part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. Each month, Dateline UC Davis profiles one such faculty member for their scientific contributions.

Johnson pursued further education at UC Davis, earning a master’s degree in preventive veterinary medicine and a doctorate. She has been a faculty member in epidemiology at the School of Veterinary Medicine since then. Her accolades include membership in the National Academy of Medicine in 2021 and the American Association for Advancement of Science the following year.

Upon her arrival at UC Davis, Johnson quickly solved her Florida mystery with help from various experts. The cause was harmful algal blooms, leading to her publishing a research paper on the topic soon after enrolling.

“I didn’t imagine I would be working with such a breadth of collaborators and expertise,” Johnson stated. She noted that UC Davis researchers prioritize collaborative success over individual recognition.

Johnson's work now focuses on identifying emerging diseases that could transfer from animals to humans. She examines how environmental changes affect disease outbreaks and collaborates globally to monitor potential future outbreaks.

She directs the One Health Institute’s EpiCenter for Disease Dynamics and leads the U.S. National Science Foundation Center for Pandemic Insights. This center is funded with $18 million over seven years through NSF’s Predictive Intelligence for Pandemic Prevention program and includes 10 partnering institutions across the United States.

Internationally, Johnson heads the EpiCenter for Emerging Infectious Disease Intelligence, one of ten Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Disease funded by NIH. This center works with international scientists to investigate infectious disease threats at high-risk animal-human interfaces and collaborates with host country governments on global health priorities. From 2023-24, she served as a U.S. Department of State Science Envoy, visiting four continents including Arctic communities focusing on One Health approaches balancing human, animal, and environmental needs.

Reflecting on her career path from two decades ago when emerging diseases were “a niche space,” Johnson notes significant growth in this field post-COVID-19 pandemic amid an avian flu outbreak. She anticipates major innovations as researchers collaborate across disciplines like engineering and artificial intelligence.

Johnson expressed hope to remain a resource for government agencies facing challenges similar to those she once encountered: “The reward for me is being able to solve the mystery in some way.”

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