Bettina Buttaro

Bettina Buttaro, PhD is an Associate Professor at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University. She holds concurrent appointments in the Department of Biomedical Education and Data Science, the Sol Sherry Thrombosis Research Center, the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Inflammation, and the Center for Microbiology and Immunology. Her research focuses on bacterial biofilm structures and their impact on antibiotic resistance and microbiota metabolism, conducted in collaboration with mathematicians, engineers, and microbiologists.

• Education: PhD from University of Minnesota; Fellowship at Alexander von Humboldt (Universität Ulm, Germany).

Research Interests: Dr. Buttaro’s lab investigates three core areas: (1) how pheromone-responsive plasmids reshape Enterococcus faecalis biofilms to enhance virulence, (2) fluid dynamics around biofilm structures that create antibiotic-resistant microenvironments, and (3) biofilm growth modeling on marble monuments with the National Park Service. These projects bridge microbiology, engineering, and computational science.

Education Leadership: As director of the Microbiology and Infectious Disease Thread, she designs a two-year curriculum integrating microbiome contributions to health and pathogen-driven diseases. She also teaches bacteriology and microbiota across Temple’s health science programs.

• Awards: Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship.

Labs & Collaborations: Active in the Sol Sherry Thrombosis Research Center and Center for Microbiology and Immunology. Collaborates with computational experts (Drs. Klapper, Queisser, Picone) and clinical partners (TUh ID Section) to translate basic science into medical education and patient care.