Abdulwhab “Abe” Shremo Msdi, Pharm.D., BCIDP, University of Houston College of Pharmacy
(UHCOP) research assistant professor, has been named the 2026 Distinguished Young
Alumnus Award recipient by his alma mater, the Palm Beach Atlantic University Lloyd
L. Gregory School of Pharmacy.
The award recognizes Shremo Msdi for exceptional achievements early in his career and his growing impact on the pharmacy profession through infectious diseases and microbiome research, scholarship and academic service.
A 2021 graduate of the Gregory School of Pharmacy, Shremo Msdi completed a one-year pharmacotherapy residency at Orlando Health and a two-year infectious diseases pharmacy fellowship at Loma Linda University Health in California before joining the UHCOP Department of Pharmacy Practice and Translational Research in 2024.
“This award is an honor and a reminder of the support and mentorship I received from the Gregory School of Pharmacy throughout my journey,” Shremo Msdi said. “I see this recognition as a responsibility to keep learning and pushing forward.”
At UHCOP, Shremo Msdi’s research focuses on the relationship between the gut microbiome, medications and human health, particularly the ways microbiome disruption may contribute to infectious and chronic diseases. His work explores how medications affect the composition and function of the gut microbiome as well as the role of microbiome disruption in antimicrobial resistance and hypertension.
Shremo Msdi also has played a key role in establishing UHCOP’s PharmacoBiome Lab, an interdisciplinary, multi-investigator research group focused on translating discoveries involving the microbiome, infectious diseases and antimicrobial-resistant pathogens into strategies to improve human health.
His path to a career in pharmacy and research began thousands of miles from Houston.
Shremo Msdi came to the U.S. in 2015 after his education was disrupted by his native country of Syria’s civil war. He enrolled at Palm Beach Atlantic University while still developing his English-language skills and initially studied medicinal and biological chemistry before entering the Pharm.D. program.
During pharmacy school, his academic performance and interest in research led to several honors. He became the first recipient of the Atlantis Pharmacy Scholarship, earned recognition for his performance on the Pharmacy Curriculum Outcomes Assessment and participated in research opportunities while completing his pharmacy degree.
Upon graduation, Shremo Msdi received the school’s Gregory Outstanding Graduate Award, which recognizes a member of the graduating class for academic achievement, service and commitment to the school’s mission.
Shremo Msdi’s scholarly work has included research in antimicrobial pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, antimicrobial resistance and the microbiome. He has presented research at national and international scientific meetings and authored or coauthored peer-reviewed publications and a book chapter.