Dr. Michelle H. Hersh
Ecologist
Ph.D., 2009, Duke University

Dr. Hersh is broadly interested in the connections between disease and biodiversity. Her research has focused on how ecological interactions can shape communities of plants and animals, and how linkages between diversity and disease are altered by human activities, such as climate warming. Similarly, she also looks at how a diverse community of hosts can affect the dynamics of diseases. She uses tools from molecular biology, field ecology, and statistics to address these questions.

Current Research

Dynamics of Babesia microti.
Babesia microti is the cause of babesiosis, a malaria-like disease, and an emerging human pathogen. It is likely carried by multiple animal hosts, and transmitted to humans via black-legged ticks (Ixodes scapularis). Current research involves the design of a protocol to detect Babesia infection in ticks using quantitative real-time PCR. Ultimately, the goal of this research is to better understand the role that different animal hosts and host diversity play in Babesia transmission.

Effects of tick parasitism on mouse populations.
White-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) are significant reservoirs of many tickborne pathogens, and often carry considerable tick burdens. Do larger tick burdens reduce mouse survival? In this project, the effects of tick burdens on mouse survival and population dynamics are assessed using statistical models.