Gilbert Kersh, PhD

Gilbert Kersh, PhD, is the Chief of the Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch (RZB) in the Division of Vector-Borne Diseases for the National Center on Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases. As chief of RZB, Dr. Kersh works to protect the American public from rickettsial diseases which are caused by bacteria and spread by ticks, fleas, and lice. Dr. Kersh received his PhD in Biology from the University of California, San Diego and did postdoctoral training in immunology and pathology at Washington University in St. Louis. He was a professor at Emory University from 1999-2008 where he ran a molecular immunology research program. He came to CDC in 2008 and guided the work of the Q fever research program in RZB. In 2016 he became chief of the Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch in CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases.