Dr. David Mackey

When I began as an undergrad at Penn State, they had just started their Molecular & Cellular Biology Program (MCB) – this new and exciting field caught my eye (I was in the second class to graduate from the program). For my PhD, I focused on cancer virology but once it was time for my postdoc I sought out a more biologically rich system. This ultimately led me to study of the interaction between plants and pathogenetic microbes – which I’ve been fascinated with ever since.

In 2025 we will embark on an investigation of how trophic metabolic fluxes support parasitism of maize by a bacterial pathogen.

From when I worked with undergraduate students as a graduate student and later a postdoc, I always took great satisfaction from working with young scientists and helping train them to become independent researchers. Beyond that continuing passion, I’ve stayed in academia throughout my career because I enjoy the independence to pursue questions of interest to me and the overall environment a university provides.

Long standing collaborations with researchers from the RDA in South Korea.

Congress of the International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions (IS-MPMI)

The continued momentum in terms of both growth and productivity within the department.

Love to cook, play hockey, ski, read, listen to music, do yoga, and exercise in general.