David Rockabrand, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Biology

Center for Natural Sciences, Room 104
(434) 582-2239

Education

Ph.D., University of Nebraska-Lincoln
M.B.A, Liberty University
M.Div., Liberty University
B.S., Southeast Missouri State University

Biography

Dr. Rockabrand serves as an Associate Professor of Biology at Liberty University. He joined the Department of Biology & Chemistry in January, 2020, after retiring from the Navy. His teaching interests include Microbiology, Immunology, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology Medical Ethics and Biotechnology. During his time in the military, Dr. Rockabrand focused on medical microbiology and global health. He has conducted work on disease surveillance, enteric vaccines, clinical and anatomic pathology in the United States, West Africa, and the Middle East.

Dr. Rockabrand has twenty-six articles in various journals including: Tropical Diseases, Travel Medicine and Vaccines; The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene; The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries; Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease; Journal of Bacteriology, as well as many others.

Dr. Rockabrand joined Liberty in order to use his expertise in microbiology, clinical medicine, and global health combined with his faith in a way that would impact God’s kingdom and to work in a place where he had the freedom to integrate God’s Word into everyday learning.

Courses Taught

BIOM 625- Microbial Pathogenesis and Virology
BIOM 600- Biomedical Ethics
BIOL 420- Immunology
BIOL 420L- Immunology Lab
BIOL 400- Biology Seminar
BIOL 303L- Microbiology Lab
BIOL 203- Introductory Microbiology Lecture
BIOL 203L- Introductory Microbiology Lab

Professional Memberships

Creation Theology Society
Creation Research Society

Publications

Asymptomatic falciparum and Non-falciparum Malarial Parasitemia in Adult Volunteers with and without HIV-1 Coinfection in a Cohort Study in Western Kenya. Kifude C, Stiffler D, Rockabrand D, Miller R, Parsons E, Ocholla S, Dizon NI, Torrevillas BK, Waitumbi J, Oyieko J, Luckhart S, Stewart VA. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2021 Jun 7;105(1):159-166. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.21-0012.

Malaria Rapid Diagnostic Tests: Literary Review and Recommendation for a Quality Assurance, Quality Control Algorithm.
Kavanaugh MJ, Azzam SE, Rockabrand DM. Diagnostics (Basel). 2021 Apr 25;11(5):768. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics11050768.

HIV-1 Infection Is Associated With Increased Prevalence and Abundance of Plasmodium falciparum Gametocyte-Specific Transcripts in Asymptomatic Adults in Western Kenya.
Stiffler DM, Oyieko J, Kifude CM, Rockabrand DM, Luckhart S, Stewart VA.
Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2021 Feb 5;10:600106. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2020.600106. eCollection 2020.

Downs JW, Putnam SD, Rockabrand DM, El Okla GE, Mostafa M, Monteville MR, AntosekLE, Herbst J, Tribble DR, Riddle MS, Sanders JW. (2015) A cross-sectional analysis of clinical presentations of and risk factors for enteric protozoan Infections in an Active Duty Population during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Tropical Diseases, Travel Medicine and Vaccines. 2015 1:2

Riddle MS, Rockabrand DM, Schlett C, Monteville MR, Frenck RW, Romine M, Ahmed SF, Sanders JW. (2011) A prospective study of acute diarrhea in a cohort of United States military personnel on deployment to the Multinational Force and Observers, Sinai, Egypt. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2011 Jan;84(1):59-64.

Said MM, El-Mohamady H, El-Beih FM, Rockabrand DM, Ismail TF, Monteville MR, Ahmed SF, Klena JD, Salama MS. (2010) Detection of gyrA mutation among clinical isolates of Campylobacter jejuni isolated in Egypt by MAMA-PCR. J Infect Dev Ctries. 2010 Oct 4;4(9):546-54.

Porter CK, Riddle MS, Tribble DR, Putnam SD, Rockabrand DM, Frenck RW, Rozmajzl P, Kilbane E, Fox A, Ruck R, Lim M, Johnston J, Murphy E, Sanders JW. (2010) The epidemiology of travelers’ diarrhea in Incirlik, Turkey: a region with a predominance of heat-stabile toxin producing enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2010 Mar;66(3):241-7.

Tribble DR, Baqar S, Carmolli MP, Porter C, Pierce KK, Sadigh K, Guerry P, Larsson CJ, Rockabrand D, Ventone CH, Poly F, Lyon CE, Dakdouk S, Fingar A, Gilliland T, Daunais P, Jones E, Rymarchyk S, Huston C, Darsley M, Kirkpatrick BD. (2009) Campylobacter jejuni strain CG8421: a refined model for the study of Campylobacteriosis and evaluation of Campylobacter vaccines in human subjects. Clin Infect Dis. 2009 Nov 15;49(10):1512-9.

Shaheen HI, Abdel Messih IA, Klena JD, Mansour A, El-Wakkeel Z, Wierzba TF, Sanders JW, Khalil SB, Rockabrand DM, Monteville MR, Rozmajzl PJ, Svennerholm AM, Frenck RW. (2009) Phenotypic and genotypic analysis of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) obtained from Egyptian children presenting to referral hospitals. J Clin Microbiol. Jan;47(1):189-97.

Porter CK, El Mohammady H, Baqar S, Rockabrand DM, Putnam SD, Tribble DR, Riddle MS, Frenck RW, Rozmajzl P, Kilbane E, Fox A, Ruck R, Lim M, Johnston J, Murphy E, Sanders JW. (2008) Case series study of travelers’ diarrhea in U.S. military personnel at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. Clin Vaccine Immunol., Vol. 15, No. 12, p. 1884–1887.

Poly F, Read TD, Chen YH, Monteiro MA, Serichantalergs O, Pootong P, Bodhidatta L, Mason CJ, Rockabrand D, Baqar S, Porter CK, Tribble D, Darsley M, Guerry P. (2008) Characterization of two Campylobacter jejuni strains for use in volunteer experimental infection studies. Infect Immun. Sep 22.

Kanipes MI, Tan X, Akelaitis A, Li J, Rockabrand D, Guerry P, Monteiro MA. (2009) Genetic Analysis of Lipo-oligosaccharide Core Biosynthesis in Campylobacter jejuni 81-176. J Bacteriol. Mar;190(5):1568-74. Epub 2007 Dec 21. Erratum in: JBacteriol. 2008 May;190(9):3417.