Marin Talbot Brewer
Department Head and William Terrell Distinguished Professor
Areas of expertise
About
My research focuses on the evolution and diversity of fungal threats to plants and people with interests in the genetic basis of disease emergence and host specialization, the evolution of fungicide resistance and fungal mating systems, and the taxonomy and systematics of fungi causing emerging plant diseases. I am interested in understanding how agriculture shapes fungal evolution. Recent work in my lab is concentrated on azole resistance in the human pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus in environmental settings.
My instructional expertise is in all things related to fungi and mycology, including genetics, ecology, evolution, cell biology, cultivation, taxonomy, systematics, identification, medical mycology, emerging diseases, and the impact of fungi on human civilization.
Education
Doctor of Philosophy, Plant Pathology/Phytopathology
Cornell University, NY, United States (2011)
Master of Science, Plant Sciences, General
University of Maine, ME, United States (2003)
Awards and Honors
- Student Career Success Influencer Award 2024 (2025)
- UGA Teaching Academy (2024)
- Student Career Success Influencer Award 2022 (2023)
- William Terrell Distinguished Professorship (2022)
- W.H. Weston Award for Excellence in Teaching (2022)
- DW Brooks Award for Excellence in Teaching (2021)
- Nominee, Richard B. Russell Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award (2020)
- CAES Early Career Teaching Award (2019)
- CAES Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award (2019)
- Richard B. Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (2019)
- College Nominee for Richard B. Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, 2018 (2018)
- 2016 Public Service and Outreach Fellowship Award (2016)
- CAES Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year Nominee (2016)
- Focus on Faculty (2016)
- Schroth Faces of the Future – Mycology (2013)
Courses
- PATH 9000: Doctoral Research (Fall 2025)
- PATH 7000: Master's Research (Fall 2025)
- PATH 9000: Doctoral Research (Spring 2026)
- PATH 7000: Master's Research (Spring 2026)
- PATH 8160: Special Topics in Plant Pathology (Spring 2026)
- PATH 9000: Doctoral Research (Summer 2026)
- PATH 7000: Master's Research (Summer 2026)
- PATH 9000: Doctoral Research (Fall 2026)
- PATH 7000: Master's Research (Fall 2026)
Scholarly Works
- Detection of the Gummy Stem Blight Pathogens (Stagonosporopsis spp.) in Watermelon Using Field-Adapted LAMP Assays and Rapid DNA Extraction Protocols, PLANT DISEASE, (2026).
- Sustainable agricultural practices for One Health: Responsible fungicide use, resistance mitigation, and alternative control strategies to reduce antifungal resistance, (2025).
- Assessment of sulfur phytotoxicity on Vitis vinifera grapevines in northern Georgia, CROP PROTECTION, (2025).
- High-quality genome assemblies of Colletotrichum orbiculare, a re-emerging anthracnose pathogen threatening cucurbits in the eastern US, (2025).
- Genetic diversity and population structure of Sarocladium zeae, a protective fungal endophyte for controlling mycotoxins in maize, PHYTOPATHOLOGY, (2025).
Contact
Mailing Address
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Georgia
2105 Miller Plant Sciences Bldg
Athens, GA 30602-7274
Shipping Address
120 Carlton Street
2105 Miller Plant Sci Bldg
Athens, GA 30602-7274
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