Dr. Muhammad Zakria

Biography

Dr. Muhammad Zakria is a Lecturer at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, Pakistan, and also leads the Advanced Center for Genomic Technologies (ACGT) at the Public Health Reference Lab, KMU. A pharmacist and molecular geneticist by training, he holds a Pharm-D, an M.Phil in Pharmacogenomics, and a PhD in Pharmacogenomics, all from Khyber Medical University.

His doctoral and postgraduate research focused on the association of lipid-lowering efficacy and adverse effects of statins with SLCO1B1, HMGCR, and CYP2C9 gene polymorphisms in patients with hyperlipidemia. Since August 2021, he has played a central role in genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2, personally reporting over 400 viral genome sequences during the pandemic using second- and third-generation sequencing platforms, including Illumina MiSeq and Oxford Nanopore MinION.

Dr. Zakria brings extensive hands-on expertise across the molecular diagnostics pipeline — DNA/RNA extraction, primer design, conventional and real-time PCR, Sanger sequencing, and next-generation sequencing — along with strong skills in genomic data analysis and bioinformatics. He has held research leadership roles including Research Associate on a Higher Education Commission (HEC)-funded project and Focal Person/Co-PI on a CDC-US funded whole genome sequencing project, and previously led the PCR Group at the Public Health Reference Lab, KMU, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

His research interests span pharmacogenomics, molecular diagnostics, genomic surveillance, and next-generation sequencing technologies, with a body of publications addressing statin pharmacogenomics, SARS-CoV-2 variant tracking, and related pharmaceutical and molecular sciences topics.

Research Interests

Pharmacogenomics, Next-Generation Sequencing

Publications

• Rapid eco-friendly synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles using mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) by laser decomposition as an ultraviolet photodetector — Muhammad Zakria, Wan Maryam Wan Ahmad Kamil, Naser M Ahmed , Journal (2025)
• Emodin, a potent anthraquinone mitigates MPTP-induced parkinsons’ disease pathology by regulating Nrf2 and its downstream targets: in Silico and in vivo approach — Sarwat Jahan, Muhammad Ikram, Sami Siraj, Shakir Ullah, Muhammad Zakria, Nasir Ahmad , Journal (2025)
• Alpha‐Linolenic Acid for Mitigating Neuroinflammation and Dopaminergic Neuronal Loss in Parkinson's Disease: Insights From In Vivo and In Silico Studies — Mahnoor, Sarwat Jahan, Laila Elahi, Muhammad Zakria, Rabia, Muhammad Ikram, Najeeb Ullah , Journal (2025)
• SARS-CoV-2 variants and genomic surveillance in the low-resource north-west region of Pakistan — Muhammad Waseem Shah, Muhammad Iqbal Qureshi, Ishaq Nasib Khan, Muhammad Zakria, Shahzad Ahmad, Tariq Rahim, Nasir Ahmad, Hafsah Muhammad, Sami Siraj, Asif Ali, Saeed Ahmed, Steve Harakeh, Yasar Mehmood Yousafzai , Journal (2024)
• Pattern of dyslipidemia and associated factors in coro artery disease patients in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: A cross-sectional secondary data analysis — A Hussain, M Zakria, SA Tariq, S Siraj , Journal (2023)