ARTDTP
Welcome to the Antimicrobial Resistance and Therapeutic Discovery Training Program (ARTDTP)
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one the most significant challenges currently facing modern healthcare provision. Recognizing this growing threat, the Antimicrobial Resistance and Therapeutic Discovery (ARTDTP) at Emory University was established more than a decade ago with the goal of training the “next gen” of PhD researchers with deep expertise in their own AMR-related specialty but who are also conversant in the broad swath of intersecting fields that will be required to effectively combat the threat posed by all forms of AMR.
About ARTDTP
ARTDTP supports graduate students enrolled in the Laney Graduate School of Emory University who are conducting basic research on antimicrobials, mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, and therapeutic discovery and development to combat infectious diseases. Students working in one or more of these areas with primary interests in biochemistry, immunology, microbiology, pharmacology or synthetic chemistry are encouraged to participate in ARTDTP. Currently, eligible students in their third and fourth years of PhD training are drawn from one of four programs of the Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BCDB, IMP, MMG and MSP) or the Department of Chemistry graduate program. ARTDTP provides rich educational and research opportunities to its appointees, drawing on the diverse expertise of the ARTDTP training faculty as well as numerous research and clinical facilities at Emory and elsewhere . ARTDTP is currently supported by NIH funding though NIAID award T32 AI106699 (years 6-10, 2020 to 2025). A renewal application for the next period of NIH support for ARTDTP (2025-2030) is currently pending NIH review. Students interested in appointment to ARTDTP in 2025 or later years should contact Dr. Conn (ARTDTP Co-director) to discuss the status of our application and the potential timeline for the new award.
Learn more about ARTDTP and our associated graduate programs
Program Directors
ARTDTP is co-directed by Drs. William M. Shafer and Graeme L. Conn, who also jointly serve as MPIs on the NIAID T32 award. From May 2025, Dr. Shafer will step down from these roles after more than a decade leading the program, with Dr. Joanna Goldberg assuming ARTDTP Co-directorship with Dr. Conn. Please see below for more information and contact details for the ARTDTP co-directors.
William Shafer, PhD
Co-Director (until May 2025)
William Shafer received his PhD degree in Microbiology from Kansas State University in 1979 where he studied the genetics of enterotoxin synthesis by Staphylococcus aureus. After postdoctoral studies with P.F. Sparling at the University of North Carolina where he studied the genetics of antibiotic resistance expressed by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, he moved to Emory University School of Medicine where he is now Full Professor. He is also a Senior Research Career Scientist at the Atlanta VA Medical Center. He has been continually funded by the NIH and VA since 1984, has published over 115 manuscripts, serves on multiple Editorial Boards and served on several NIH, VA and international study sections.
Graeme L. Conn, PhD
Co-Director
Dr. Conn received his B.Sc. and Ph.D. at the University of Edinburgh, UK, and followed this with postdoctoral research as a Wellcome Trust International Fellow at the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. Dr. Conn was a faculty member at UMIST/The University of Manchester, UK, from 2000 and joined the Department of Biochemistry at Emory in 2008.
Conn Lab
Joanna B. Goldberg, PhD
Co-Director (from May 2025)
Dr. Joanna B. Goldberg, is a Professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Asthma, Cystic Fibrosis, and Sleep in the Department of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine. She holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. Dr. Goldberg's research program focuses on bacterial genetics, genomics, and pathogenesis, with a particular emphasis on respiratory infections in cystic fibrosis, with the goal of developing novel therapies to prevent and treat chronic diseases.
