Dr. Guttman and his research team are using a range of comparative, evolutionary and functional genomic approaches to characterize the genes that enable bacteria to infect hosts. The goal of this research is to advance our current understanding of the origin, prevention, and treatment of infectious diseases. Using genomics tools, the research team is working to identify the genetic determinants of host specificity and the factors that determine if a bacterial-host interaction is benign or results in disease. Not only will it advance our understanding of how to prevent and treat disease, but also his research into the evolutionary forces that drive infection. Dr. Guttman is working with two complementary pathogens, Pseudomonas syringae, a common plant-associated bacterium that causes disease on a range of hosts (e.g. tomato and soybean), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a common soil bacterium that is best known for causing hospital-related infections and is the leading cause of death among people with cystic fibrosis. His studies are providing insights into the mechanisms by which bacteria cause disease, and the evolutionary and ecological forces that govern bacterial populations over time. Dr. Guttman is the lead researcher in a project funded in part by the provincial government aimed at accelerating plant health through the development of innovative new agricultural and forestry products such as improved biofuels and weather-resistant crops. The results will include healthier plants, improved crop management techniques, and the development of renewable bio-products.

Dr. Guttman is an Associate Professor in the Deparment of Cell and Systems Biology at the University of Toronto. He is also the Director at the Centre for the Analysis of Genome Evolution & Function. Dr. Guttman was granted the Canada Research Chair in Comparative Genomics in October of 2004. In 2007, Dr. Guttman was granted $2,000,000 from the Ontario Research Fund, Research Infrastructure Program to fund a project aimed at establishing a unique, cutting-edge research facility that will enable scientists, led by Dr. David Guttman, to study plant traits at the molecular and cellular levels and improve the speed of commercialization by the agricultural and forestry industries. This project is also funded by industry partners: BioRad, Zeiss, Beckman Coulter, Thermo-Finnigan and Ontario Scientific. In 1994, Dr. Guttman received his PhD from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.