Respiratory viruses can trigger a powerful immune response — one designed to protect the body.

But in some cases, that same response spirals out of control, causing severe lung inflammation, tissue damage and even death. Scientists are still working to understand why.

Seeking to answer that question, Dr. Rudra Channappanavar — associate professor of veterinary pathobiology at the Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine — has been selected as a recipient of the 2025 President’s Fellows Faculty Research Award.

“Receiving the President’s Fellows Research Award is truly an honor,” Channappanavar said. “It reflects strong institutional support for the direction and impact of our research program and recognizes the hard work of our students, collaborators and colleagues. Advancing innovative basic and preclinical research to address critical challenges in infectious disease biology is central to our mission.”

For more than a decade, Channappanavar has studied respiratory virus immunology and pathogenesis. His laboratory focuses on defining the cellular and molecular pathways that drive inflammation, immune-mediated lung injury and recovery following infections such as coronaviruses and influenza.

By integrating immunology, virology and translational animal models, his team works to determine why protective antiviral immune responses sometimes become dysregulated and harmful. The long-term goal is to identify therapeutic strategies that control damaging inflammation without compromising the body’s ability to eliminate the virus — discoveries with implications for both human and animal health.

The President’s Fellows Faculty Research Award will provide critical support to expand ongoing mechanistic studies in his laboratory. The funding will help generate key preliminary data, support trainee-driven research projects and accelerate innovative directions that strengthen the team’s competitiveness for future external funding.

Channappanavar has been at OSU for just over five years, where he leads research initiatives in immunopathology and mentors graduate students and trainees. He said supporting the next generation of scientists while advancing impactful research is one of the most rewarding aspects of his role.

“This is an outstanding recognition for one of our early-career faculty who is indeed a rising star in research,” said Dr. Jerry Rithcey, interim dean of OSU CVM. “He has been extremely productive, accomplishing much in a short time. In addition to his own laboratory, Rudra also supervises the Immunopathology Core Program, which is part of the Oklahoma Center for Respiratory and Infectious Diseases. He has been an amazing research collaborator, an excellent mentor for trainees, and a pillar of our summer research training program for veterinary students.”

Facilitated by OSU, the President’s Fellows Faculty Research Award is a one-time $20,000 grant supporting impactful faculty research. Recipients provide project updates to the President’s Fellows Organization through 2026.