Cassandra Dawn Pauling, PhD, Assistant Professor of Biology (Wildlife Diseases, Immunology) at the University of Central Missouri (UCM) studies how certain diseases move through nature using carriers like fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes. Her focus is on pathogens, the tiny organisms that cause disease, and how they survive, adapt, and spread across different environments.
Her research examines how environmental factors enable pathogens to persist long enough to reach human populations. Using cutting-edge laboratory technology, Dr. Pauling and her team at UCM can now recreate aspects of natural environments in a controlled setting. By simulating conditions like temperature changes, moisture levels, and nutrient availability, they observe how these conditions affect pathogen survival and transmission.
Dr. Pauling’s path to this work began in wildlife biology, where she trained as a field biologist in Alaska studying natural ecosystems. Her interest in disease developed later through hands-on experience and an internship that introduced her to wildlife disease research. That experience changed her direction and revealed how closely wildlife health and human health are connected. Today, she approaches her research through a One Health perspective, which recognizes that the health of animals, environments, and people are deeply linked. This perspective has shaped a research program focused on collaboration, innovation, and a more complete understanding of health across systems.