Dr. Direk Limmathurotsakul is a Professor in the Department of Tropical Hygiene. He holds a Doctor of Medicine degree from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, an M.Sc. in Medical Statistics from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and a Ph.D. in Life and Biomolecular Sciences from Open University, United Kingdom. Dr. Direk is an international authority on melioidosis, an often-fatal infectious disease caused by bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei.