Michael Fessler

Michael Fessler, M.D., serves as Senior Investigator, NIEHS Clinical Director, and Chief of the Immunity, Inflammation, and Disease Laboratory at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). He leads the Clinical Investigation in Host Defense Group, focusing on molecular mechanisms linking innate immunity and cholesterol trafficking in inflammatory lung diseases.

His academic training includes:

• A.B. in Philosophy from Princeton University (1992)
• M.D. from Harvard Medical School (1996)
• Internal Medicine Residency at Massachusetts General Hospital
• Pulmonary-Critical Care Fellowship at University of Colorado Health Sciences Center

Research centers on cholesterol/membrane trafficking's role in regulating inflammatory responses, using macrophage and murine lung models to investigate dyslipidemia-lung disease connections. The Host Defense Group tests the hypothesis that cholesterol trafficking and innate immunity signaling are intrinsically coupled processes with translational implications for public health.

Publications reveal critical intersections between lipid homeostasis and immune signaling, with recent work identifying mitochondrial quality control mechanisms in autoimmunity and epithelial proteins governing neutrophil migration during lung infection.

Award recognitions include:

• NIEHS Early Career Award
• NIEHS Intramural Research Award
• American Thoracic Society Carol Basbaum Award

Dr. Fessler serves on PLoS One's editorial board and as F1000 Faculty Member. His laboratory maintains active research in immunology, microbiology, clinical research, systems biology, and cell biology, with ongoing studies into cholesterol manipulation's therapeutic potential for inflammatory diseases.