Charles C. Shepard (December 18, 1914 – February 18, 1985) was a

microbiologist A microbiologist (from Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and some types of par ...

, and former director of the

Centers for Disease Control The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...

’s Laboratory Division. It was the diligent efforts of Shepard, and cohort microbiologist Joseph McDade, which led to the 1977 discovery of the initially elusive bacterium ''

Legionella pneumophila ''Legionella pneumophila'', the primary causative agent for Legionnaires' disease, Legionnaire's disease, is an Aerobic organism, aerobic, pleomorphic, Flagellum, flagellated, non-spore-forming, Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-negative bacterium. ' ...

'', the etiologic agent that causes ‘

Legionnaires The French Foreign Legion (, also known simply as , "the Legion") is a corps of the French Army created to allow List of militaries that recruit foreigners, foreign nationals into French service. The Legion was founded in 1831 and today consis ...

' disease’. In 1963, he was presented with the

Gorgas Medal The Gorgas Medal was originally established as an annual award in 1915 by the Medical Reserve Corps Association of New York in honor of Surgeon General William C. Gorgas, U.S. Army. The award was based on a writing competition open to members of th ...

from the

Association of Military Surgeons of the United States AMSUS, The Society of Federal Health Professionals, is a non-profit (501c3) professional association for all U.S. federal health professionals serving in the Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Health and Human Se ...

(AMSUS). Shepard was chief of the Leprosy and Rickettsia Branch at CDC for more than 30 years, until his death on February 18, 1985. Each year the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the National public health institutes, national public health agency of the United States. It is a Federal agencies of the United States, United States federal agency under the United S ...

(CDC) and the

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is a federal public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The agency focuses on minimizing human health risks associated with exposure to hazar ...

(ATSDR) present the Charles C. Shepard Science Awards to the authors of the most outstanding peer-reviewed research papers published by CDC/ATSDR scientists.

Early life and education

He was born in

Ord, Nebraska Ord is a city in Valley County, Nebraska, Valley County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,112 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is the county seat of Valley County, Nebraska, Valley County. History Ord was platted in ...

, on December 18, 1914. He attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

(1932–1935) and then transferred to

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

, where he received B.S., M.S., and M.D. degrees ''This article incorporates public domain text from the CDC website, under CDC PHIL image 10136.''

References

External links

Charles C. Shepard Papers at Woodruff Health Sciences Center Library, Historical Collections, Emory University
American microbiologists People from Ord, Nebraska Stanford University alumni Northwestern University alumni Feinberg School of Medicine alumni 1914 births 1985 deaths {{US-scientist-stub