Tricia Humphreys

Headshot of Tricia Humphreys
Email: thumphre@allegheny.edu
Office Phone: (814) 332-2967
Office Building: STEF
Office Room: B211
Box #: 10
Faculty Website

Professional Title/s

Professor : Schwartz Professor of Life Sciences

Faculty Credentials

B.A., Thomas More College; Ph.D., Miami University

Biographical Information

Teaching

Investigative Approaches in Biology, Microbiology, Immunology, Bacterial Pathogenesis.

Research

Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, Host-Pathogen Interactions, Chancroid

Research Interests

My research focuses on the obligate human pathogen Haemophilus ducreyi, which is most well known for causing chancroid, a sexually transmitted disease that is prevalent in resource-poor areas of the world. Previously, chancroid was of interest because it is associated with an increased risk of transmission and acquisition of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). More recently, H. ducreyi has been linked to limb ulcers in children in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Samoa, etc.). Students in my lab have studied the evolutionary relationships among isolates of H. ducreyi, differences in antibiotic susceptibility among isolates, and the potential to use essential oils as treatment for chancroid. My students are also interested in why more men than women have chancroid and they are trying to find out the biological basis for this sex bias. Furthermore, we are interested in figuring out why this organism that was previously thought to be only sexually transmitted is apparently being transmitted by some other, unknown, route. We address these questions with a variety of lab techniques, including DNA sequencing, classic bacteriology assays, bioinformatics, biochemical approaches, and work with biological vectors of disease

More Information

Office Hours

  • Mondays: none
  • Tuesdays: 1:30-2pm and 3:30-5pm
  • Wednesdays: 4:30-5pm
  • Thursdays: 10-11:30am
  • Fridays: 2-4pm

Instagram:@chancroidlab