Diana Downs, Ph.D.
University of Georgia
Diana Downs, Ph.D., is a professor of microbiology at the University of Georgia. She is adjunct in both the Department of Genetics and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Since 1993, the Downs lab has focused on understanding the function and integration of metabolic pathways in bacteria.
She received her B.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Utah, and postdoctoral training at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Prior to joining the University of Georgia in 2013, she spent 20 years as a faculty member in the Department of Bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The current focus of her group is to understand the biochemical and physiological role(s) of members of the large, conserved Rid superfamily of proteins.
Downs’ research and mentoring has received recognition with multiple awards throughout her career. These include a 21st Century Scientist Award for Complex System Analysis, E. B. Fred Professorship, Distinguished Research Professorship, ASM Graduate Microbiology Teaching Award and recognition in the ASM Press book Women in Microbiology.
She received her B.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Utah, and postdoctoral training at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Prior to joining the University of Georgia in 2013, she spent 20 years as a faculty member in the Department of Bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The current focus of her group is to understand the biochemical and physiological role(s) of members of the large, conserved Rid superfamily of proteins.
Downs’ research and mentoring has received recognition with multiple awards throughout her career. These include a 21st Century Scientist Award for Complex System Analysis, E. B. Fred Professorship, Distinguished Research Professorship, ASM Graduate Microbiology Teaching Award and recognition in the ASM Press book Women in Microbiology.