Research Interests: 
Microbiological food safety, zoonotic origin of food and waterborne disease,  E. coli O157:H7, evolutionary genomics of bacteria, emerging infectious diseases

Teaching Interests:  
Bacterial pathogenesis, Molecular evolution, Evolution of infectious diseases 

Graduate Advising:  Food Science

Publications: 

Tarr, C. L., and T. S. Whittam. 2002. Molecular evolution of the intimin gene in O111 clones of pathogenic Escherichia coli. Journal of Bacteriology 184:479-487.

Monday, S. R., T. S. Whittam and P. C. Feng. 2001. Genetic and evolutionary analysis of mutations in the gusA gene that cause the absence of beta-glucuronidase activity in Escherichia coli O157:H7. Journal of Infectious Diseases 184: 918-21.

Donnenberg, M. S. and T. S. Whittam. 2001. Pathogenesis and evolution of virulence in enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli. Journal of Clinical Investigation 107:539-548.

Tarr, P. I., L. M. Schoening, Y.-L. Yea, T. R. Ward, S. Jelacic, and T. S. Whittam. 2000. Acquisition of the rfb-gnd cluster in the evolution of Escherichia coli O55 and O157. Journal of Bacteriology 182:6183-6191.

Herbelin, C. J., S. C. Chirillo, K. A. Melnick, and T. S. Whittam.   2000.  Gene conservation and loss in the mutS-rpoS genomic region of   pathogenic Escherichia coli. Journal of Bacteriology 182:5381-5390.

Reid S. D, C. J. Herbelin, A. C. Bumbaugh, R. K. Selander, T. S. Whittam.  2000.  Parallel evolution of virulence in pathogenic Escherichia coli. Nature 406:64-67.