Dr. Bob Pruitt’s research is presently focused on studying the nature of bacterial interactions with plants, with a particular focus on human pathogens that contaminate fresh produce. The goals of this research are to understand how pathogenic bacteria are introduced into the plant system and what bacterial, plant and environmental factors allow them to survive and proliferate. Experiments utilize techniques ranging from traditional microbiology and genetics to modern sequencing methods to examine the microbial communities associated with commercial produce.