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Joshua Benjamin Parsons

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Medicine, Infectious Diseases

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Assistant Professor of Medicine · 2024 - Present Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Medicine

Recent Publications


Methicillin-resistant and susceptible Staphylococcus aureus: tolerance, immune evasion and treatment.

Journal Article Nat Rev Microbiol · February 2026 Staphylococcus aureus is capable of infecting every organ system in the body and developing resistance to every available antibiotic used to treat it, such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (commonly referred to as MRSA). This pathogen is characterized by ... Full text Link to item Cite

The innate immune protein calprotectin ablates the bactericidal activity of β-lactam antibiotics.

Journal Article Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A · January 20, 2026 β-lactam antibiotics are among the most widely used treatments for bacterial infections, yet therapeutic failure is common even when no genetic resistance is detected. Understanding how host factors influence antibiotic efficacy is critical for improving o ... Full text Link to item Cite

Female Sex and Mortality in Patients With Gram-Negative Bacteremia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Journal Article JAMA Netw Open · November 3, 2025 IMPORTANCE: Female sex has been identified as a risk factor for mortality in Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection (SA-BSI). It is unknown whether this association extends to bloodstream infections with other bacterial species. OBJECTIVE: To investig ... Full text Link to item Cite
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Recent Grants


Genomic determinants of antibiotic treatment failure in S. aureus bacteremia

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2024 - 2029

Parsons UNC Interinstitutional Agreement

FellowshipPI-Fellow · Awarded by University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill · 2021 - 2024

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Education, Training & Certifications


University of Tennessee Health Science Center · 2018 M.D.
University of Kent (United Kingdom) · 2009 Ph.D.