Rate My Professor Terri Ellis

Terri N. Ellis is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of North Florida, where she conducts research as a medical microbiologist. She earned her Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of California, Davis in 2004, investigating innate immune responses to Nocardia asteroides under the mentorship of Blaine Beaman, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Duke University in 1996. Following her doctorate, Ellis completed postdoctoral fellowships at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and Duke University Medical Center from 2006 to 2010, studying outer membrane vesicles with Dr. Meta Kuehn in the Department of Biochemistry.

Ellis's research focuses on bacterial pathogenesis, examining how alterations in outer surface components of Klebsiella pneumoniae—such as outer membrane vesicles, porins, and polysaccharide capsules—affect virulence and antibiotic resistance. She utilizes proteomic, biochemical, cell biology, genetic, and immunology techniques, incorporating undergraduate student training in her investigations. Notable publications include 'Virulence and immunomodulatory roles of bacterial outer membrane vesicles' (2010, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews), 'Porin loss impacts the host inflammatory response to outer membrane vesicles of Klebsiella pneumoniae' (2016, Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy), 'Progressive Sub-MIC Exposure of Klebsiella pneumoniae 43816 to Cephalothin Induces the Evolution of Beta-Lactam Resistance without Acquisition of Beta-Lactamase Genes' (2023, Antibiotics), and 'Assessing Water Erosion Improvement in Beach Sand Treated with Bioslurry Using a Surface Percolation Technique' (2024, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering). Her work also extends to microbial-induced calcite precipitation for soil stabilization. As Co-Principal Investigator, she contributes to the NIH-funded U-RISE program at UNF, fostering biomedical research training for undergraduates. Ellis holds leadership roles in the Florida Branch of the American Society for Microbiology, participates in NSF CREATE and FIRST IV initiatives for science pedagogy, delivers lectures on antibiotic resistance, and recently received a UNF MedNexus RIF grant for 'Defining the Selection Window.'