James Robb (pathologist)

James A. Robb is an American pathologist and molecular virologist.

Robb has a BA in theoretical physics from the University of Colorado. In 1965, he began medical studies at the University of Colorado Medical School, where he took his MD degree. He took a residency in pathology, as well as training in molecular biology, at Yale University, then went to work at the National Institutes of Health. He has been a professor at the University of California, San Diego, a consulting pathologist at the National Cancer Institute, and director of anatomic and molecular pathology at Cedars Medical Center in Miami, Florida.[1] He is board certified in anatomic pathology, clinical pathology, cytopathology, and dermatopathology.

During the 1970s while he was at UC-San Diego, Robb published some of the earliest descriptions of coronaviruses.[2] He co-wrote the chapter on coronaviruses in the book Comprehensive Virology[3] and has published extensively on the subject.[4][5] In February 2020, he wrote a "Dear colleagues" open letter detailing his advice on how to avoid contracting COVID-19 and similar diseases. In March 2020, this open letter received multiple on-line re-postings and obtained wide attention.[2][6][7]