Troy Bankhead
Director, Immunology & Infectious Diseases Graduate ProgramProfessor tbankhead@wsu.edu https://www.bankheadlab.org/Dr. Troy Bankhead’s research focuses on determining the molecular details of immune evasion, gene regulation, and pathogenesis exhibited by Borrelia species that cause Lyme disease and Relapsing fever. His studies are designed to bridge microbial genetics and molecular biology to bacterial pathogenesis under more natural conditions involving the enzootic cycle of the pathogen. Overall, the significance of this work is that it will ultimately advance our current knowledge of immune evasion and pathogenesis by these Borrelia species as it relates to both human infection and the pathogen’s natural life cycle, and have the potential to identify new avenues for the treatment and prevention of Lyme disease.
Education
- PhD, University of California, San Diego and San Diego State University (Joint Doctoral Program), 2002
- BS, San Diego State University, 1997
Research Interest
- Host-pathogen interactions
- Immune evasion mechanisms
- Gene regulation
- Bacterial pathogenesis