Tatum Mortimer, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. Additionally, she is a core faculty member in UGA’s Center in Precision One Health, and has courtesy appointments in the Department of Microbiology and the Institute of Bioinformatics. In her lab, they use genomics to understand the evolution and epidemiology of bacterial pathogens and develop precision diagnostics.

She earned her PhD at University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Microbiology Doctoral Training Program. Under the mentorship of Dr. Caitlin Pepperell, her graduate thesis centered on the impact of recombination and selection on the evolution of bacterial pathogens. Her postdoctoral research in Dr. Yonatan Grad’s lab at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health used whole genome sequencing data from bacterial pathogens, primarily Neisseria gonorrhoeae, to understand transmission, antimicrobial resistance, and adaptation to host environments.

Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading, baking, and enjoying everything Athens, GA has to offer (music! food! football!).