Dr. Gaurav Rawal
About Dr. Gaurav Rawal
Dr. Gaurav Rawal is an Assistant Professor of Virology at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Arkansas State University. His research focuses on veterinary virology, infectious disease epidemiology, and translational approaches to preventing and controlling viral diseases affecting livestock and poultry. His work integrates viral pathogenesis, host–pathogen interactions, vaccine evaluation, molecular diagnostics, and disease surveillance to develop practical solutions for improving animal health and sustainable livestock production.
Dr. Rawal earned his Bachelor of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry (BVSc & AH) from Tribhuvan University, Nepal, and completed his Master of Science in Veterinary Preventive Medicine and PhD in Population Sciences in Animal Health at Iowa State University. His graduate research focused on emerging swine viral diseases, including porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and porcine astrovirus, with emphasis on disease characterization, vaccine efficacy, and diagnostic assay development.
Prior to joining Arkansas State University, Dr. Rawal gained extensive industry experience as a Principal Investigator at Clinvet South Dakota, where he led and managed veterinary clinical research studies evaluating vaccines, biologics, and animal health products across multiple livestock species. His expertise includes clinical trials, regulatory research, diagnostics, and collaborative research programs with industry partners.
At Arkansas State University, Dr. Rawal contributes to the DVM curriculum through teaching veterinary virology and epidemiology, mentoring veterinary and graduate students, and developing a research program focused on advancing infectious disease prevention and control in animal populations.
Education
- PhD, Population Sciences in Animal Health, Iowa State University, Ames, USA
- Master of Science, Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Iowa State University, Ames, USA
- BVSc & AH, Bachelor of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, Tribhuvan University, Nepal
Research at a Glance
Summary
Dr. Rawal’s research focuses on veterinary virology, infectious disease epidemiology, and translational approaches to preventing and controlling viral diseases in livestock and poultry. His work integrates viral pathogenesis, host–pathogen interactions, vaccine efficacy, diagnostics, and disease surveillance to develop practical, evidence-based strategies for improving animal health.
A growing component of his research program focuses on data-driven animal disease surveillance, integrating diagnostic, epidemiologic, and molecular data to monitor disease trends, identify risk factors, and support early detection and proactive disease prevention.
At Arkansas State University, Dr. Rawal serves as a course coordinator for Veterinary Virology and teaches Veterinary Immunology and Epidemiology. He also mentors DVM and graduate students while developing collaborative research programs focused on advancing animal health, disease prevention, and sustainable livestock and poultry production.
Areas of Expertise
- Virology
- Infectious Diseases
- Epidemiology and One Health
Selected Publications
- Rawal G, Almeida MN, Gauger PC, Zimmerman JJ, Ye F, Rademacher CJ, Armenta Leyva B, Munguia-Ramirez B, Tarasiuk G, Schumacher LL, Aljets EK, Thomas JT, Zhu JH, Trexel JB, Zhang J. In Vivo and In Vitro Characterization of the Recently Emergent PRRSV 1-4-4 L1C Variant (L1C.5) in Comparison with Other PRRSV-2 Lineage 1 Isolates. Viruses. 2023 Nov 9;15(11):2233. doi: 10.3390/v15112233. PMID: 38005910; PMCID: PMC10674456.
- Rawal, Gaurav, Wannarat Yim-im, Ethan Aljets, Patrick G. Halbur, Jianqiang Zhang, and Tanja Opriessnig. 2023. "Porcine Respiratory Coronavirus (PRCV): Isolation and Characterization of a Variant PRCV from USA Pigs" Pathogens 12, no. 9: 1097. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12091097.
- Rawal G, Ferreyra FM, Macedo NR, Bradner LK, Harmon KM, Allison G, Linhares DCL, Arruda BL. Ecology of Porcine Astrovirus Type 3 in a Herd with Associated Neurologic Disease. Viruses. 2020 Sep 7;12(9):992. doi: 10.3390/v12090992. PMID: 32906600; PMCID: PMC7552043.
Teaching
Courses Taught
- Co-Instructor for Veterinary Immunology Fall 2026 for 1st-year students (DRVM71152) at Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR.
- Course Leader for Veterinary Virology Spring 2027 for 1st-year students at Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR.
- Guest Lecturer for VET640-Agents of Disease II at South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD
Teaching Interests
- Veterinary Virology
- Immunology
- Epidemiology and Population Sciences