Postdoctoral Fellow - Ophthalmology, Microbiology, and Immunobiology
Harvard Medical School - 2012

Kelli Palmer
Cecil H. and Ida Green Chair in Systems Biology Science
Professor - Biological Sciences
972-883-6014
BSB 12.542
Google Scholar page
ORCID
Not currently accepting undergraduate or graduate students
Professional Preparation
Ph.D. - Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
University of Texas at Austin - 2008
University of Texas at Austin - 2008
B.S. - Microbiology
University of Oklahoma - 2003
University of Oklahoma - 2003
Research Areas
Research Interests
I study antibiotic resistance in pathogenic bacteria. My lab currently studies three areas:1) How antibiotic resistance genes spread among microbes on mobile genetic elements;
2) How CRISPR-Cas systems encoded naturally in the human microbiome alter the spread of antibiotic resistance genes; and
3) How pathogenic bacteria construct their outer surface and dynamically alter its structure in response to chemical stresses imposed by the human host.
Publications
Factors affecting CRISPR-Cas defense against antibiotic resistance plasmids harbored by Enterococcus faecalis laboratory model strains and clinical isolates 2025 - Other
Factors affecting CRISPR-Cas defense against antibiotic resistance plasmids harbored byEnterococcus faecalislaboratory model strains and clinical isolates 2025 - Other
Erratum for Joyce et al., “Comparative Genomics of Streptococcus oralis Identifies Large Scale Homologous Recombination and a Genetic Variant Associated with Infection” 2024 - Journal Article
Streptococcus agalactiae glycolipids promote virulence by thwarting immune cell clearance 2024 - Journal Article
Enterococcus faecium: evolution, adaptation, pathogenesis and emerging therapeutics 2024 - Journal Article
Biosynthesis of mitis group streptococcal glycolipids and their roles in physiology and antibiotic susceptibility 2024 - Other
Awards
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Outstanding NS&M Teacher Award - [2017]
News Articles
Microbiologist Aims to Thwart Antibiotic Resistance

Biologist Investigates How Gene-Swapping Bacteria Evade Antibiotics

Dr. Kelli Palmer, assistant professor of biological sciences at The University of Texas at Dallas, is conducting research aimed at understanding the underlying mechanisms by which bacteria acquire antibiotic resistance genes from one another.
NIH Funds Dr. Palmer’s $2.4 Million Project
