Dr. Colleen Kelley is Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University School of Medicine and Associate Dean for Research with a multi-disciplinary background and previous experience in clinical HIV/STI medicine, HIV/STI epidemiology research, clinical trials, and laboratory-based research. Dr. Kelley uses her broad skills to lead an NIH-funded, investigator-initiated research portfolio; to conduct multi-center clinical trials; and to perform public health research. The primary focus of her investigator-initiated research is on human mucosal immunology with a particular interest in biomedical prevention interventions including HIV/STI vaccines, pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis, and microbicides. She is currently PI of several ongoing, federally funded studies examining how real-life, human, sexual contexts can alter immune environments and inflammation systemically and in mucosal tissues. Dr. Kelley also serves as a lead clinical trials investigator in the HIV Vaccine Trials Network and HIV Prevention Trials Network and PI for the NIH-funded Emory HIV/AIDS Clinical Trials Unit. She was lead investigator for the pivotal PURPOSE2 trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2024 demonstrating remarkable efficacy of lenacapavir injected every 6 months for HIV prevention. Dr. Kelley serves as Co-Director for the Emory Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) and program director for the Emory HIV T32 training program, roles that involve innovating new programs, supporting the success of junior investigators, and advancing HIV science at Emory to End the HIV Epidemic locally and globally. Finally, Dr. Kelley is a past chair for the HIV Medical Association where she advocates for patients at risk for and living with HIV, their clinical providers, and HIV researchers.
