The Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the Faculty of Tropical Medicine was established in 1966 under the strong leadership and vision of the first Head of the Department (Late Professor Emeritus Savanat Tharavanij, 1966-1994), and has become one of the most active department in teaching and research ever since.
The Department has actively involved in teaching of three international graduate programs, M.Sc., Ph.D programs in Tropical Medicine, Diploma of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (D.T.M. &H.) and Master of Science (School Health). These graduate programs have brought in foreign graduate students from more than 42 countries since establishment. Two track courses on microbiology and on immunology have been offered for M.Sc. and Ph.D programs by the Department. We are determined to make sure that our students are in active learning with highly qualified staff members in teaching and in doing research, well-equipped facilities and in pleasant environment. Up to now, the Department had granted more than a hundred of Ph.D and M.Sc. graduated students including those from Australia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos, Nepal.
The Department places a strong emphasis on research and continues to produce significant contributions to national health development and international scientific advancement. The staff members of the Department are engaged in a number of basic and applied researches in microbiology, immunology and molecular biology of tropical diseases with the major focus on malaria, enteric bacterial infections, mellioidosis, leptospirosis, TB, brucellosis, scrub typhus, influenza and dengue virus infections, HIV/AIDS, and so on. Collaborative academic activities are encouraged through both national and international partnerships, and the Department is currently collaborated with 17 national and 43 international leading research institutions. Most research articles have been published in international peer-reviewed journals including the prestigious journal Science, and many research inventions have been patented in international and national organization. A number of our staffs received national and international recognition and are the recipients of many outstanding research awards from both national and international organization. In addition, a number of our staffs serve as reviewers for regional and international journals, some serve as editors and members of the editorial boards for journals, and some serve as grant reviewers for national and international granting agencies.