Dr. Tyesha Farmer Biography

Dr. Tyesha Farmer is a Genetics professor and Title III Activity Director at Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University where she teaches Genetics and Molecular Biology courses and leads multiple efforts to broaden participation in STEM for underrepresented students. With recent emphasis on bioinformatics and genomics, Dr. Farmer collaborates with government and industry partners to cultivate avenues for research training and skill based digital credentialing, furthering her mission to democratize computational resources. As a Title III Activity Director, she oversees strategies to bolster retention, persistence, and graduation rates of STEM majors. Her unwavering commitment to support and create opportunities for disadvantaged and underrepresented students in STEM has earned her a feature on the BioHackathon podcast entitled “Science for Everyone" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPrLkt07cPo).   

Dr. Farmer’s research background encompasses cancer biology and genomics, health disparities, and cellular responses to bioactive compounds. She is a summa cum laude graduate of Alabama A&M University and holds a PhD in Genetics from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. A native of Sumter County in Alabama’s Black Belt region, Dr. Farmer’s roots and humble upbringing are the driving force behind her passion to provide exposure, to uplift, and to empower her students. 

Research areas of interest:  Cancer Genomics and TOR Signaling, Curcuminoid Bioactivity, Bioinformatics 

 

Education

PhD University of Alabama at Birmingham

B.S. Alabama A & M University

 

Publications

• Becket E, Johnson KO, Burke CJ, Clark JJ, Cohen MJS, Coil DA, Eggleston CA, Farmer TL, Vaishampayan P et al. Draft Genome Sequences of Bacillus glennii V44-8, Bacillus saganii V47-23a, Bacillus sp. Strain V59.32b, Bacillus sp. Strain MER_TA_151, and Paenibacillus sp. Strain MER_111, isolated from cleanrooms where the Viking and Mars Exploration Rover Spacecraft were assembled.  Microbiol Resour Announc. 2020 Jun 25;9(26):e00354-20.  
• Farmer, TL and TV Strong, GSE26232: Genomic profiles vary with race and subtype in young African American and European American breast cancer (SNP), Gene Expression Omnibus: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=GSE26232, publicly available 01/29/13, last update 11/27/18  
• Farmer, TL and TV Strong, GSE26214: Genomic profiles vary with race and subtype in young African American and European American breast cancer (aCGH), Gene Expression Omnibus: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=GSE26214, publicly available 01/29/13, last update 01/30/13  
• Sell SM,*White T, Johnson P, Johnson J, Palmer E, Tullis C, Lugemwa PR. An improved assay for genotyping the common Alu insertion in the tissue-type plasminogen activator gene PLAT. Genet Test. 6(1):67-68. 2002 (*previous name)