Disease Ecology
Research in the Goldberg Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison focuses on the ecology‚ epidemiology, and evolution of infectious disease. We combine field and laboratory methods to understand how pathogens in dynamic ecosystems are transmitted among hosts‚ across complex landscapes‚ and over time. We also endeavor to understand how and why pathogens evolve in response to selection pressures operating at hierarchical levels‚ from the individual to the population. Our goal is to discover generalized mechanisms of pathogen transmission and evolution, and to use this information to improve the health and wellbeing of animals and people while helping to conserve the complex and rapidly changing ecosystems we share.