About Us :

Since its establishment in 1964 with the main support from the University Development Program of the Rockefeller Foundation, the Department of Biochemistry at Faculty of Science, Mahidol University has been recognized as a country’s leading institution in both teaching and research in Biochemistry. The professional leaderships of Professor James S. Dinning and Professor James A. Olson during the initial period of setting up the Department have laid strong foundation and marked the internationalization and excellence of today’s teaching and research activities in Biochemistry.

During the past 4 decades, the Department has gone from strength to strength and has contributed productively towards graduate training and high quality research in Biochemistry. A number of alumni have made successful academic career; some are currently assuming key positions in local and/or international professional societies and play important roles in promoting training and research activities of the Department. Since its establishment, the Department has seen the graduation of over 75 Ph.D. and about 365 M.Sc. students.

The Department of Biochemistry is located on the 3rd floor of Pr, B and R-buildings and occupies approximately 3,000 m2 of laboratory space. Some of our staff’s laboratories are located at Center for Protein Structure and Function on the 4th floor of Chalermphrakiet building. The department houses 17 research laboratories, 3 culture rooms, a P2-containment facility, an IT room, an isotope room and two instrument rooms. Our facilities include X-ray Diffractometer, Stopped-flow Spectrophotometer, Anaerobic Glovebox, Rapid Quench Flow Apparatus, Confocal Fluorescent Microscope, etc. Other sophisticated instruments necessary for the research such as mass spectrometer, atomic absorption analyzer, HPLC, GC are available at Central Instrument Facility (CIF) of the Faculty.

 
 

History of the Department :
Past Chairpersons
1. Prof. James S. Dinning
Ph.D. (Oklahoma State U., 1948)


(1964-1968) 		2. Prof. James A. Olson
Ph.D. (Harvard U.)


(1968-1972) 		3. Prof. Serene Piboonniyom
Ph.D. (Harvard U., 1962)


(1972-1976)		  
 
4. Prof. Montri Chulavatanatol
Ph.D. (PCLA, 1971)


(1976-1980) 		5. Prof. M.R. Jisnuson Svasti
Ph.D. (U. Cambridge, 1972)


(1980-1984) 		6. Prof. Sakol Panyim
Ph.D. (lowa U., 1971)


(1984-1988)		  
 
7. Prof. Prapon Wilairat
Ph.D. (Oregon U., 1974)


(1988-1992) 		8. Prof. Vichai Boonsaeng
Ph.D. (Otago U., 1975)


(1992-1996) 		9. Assoc. Prof. Bhinyo Panijpan
Ph.D. (King's College, 1973)


(1996-1998)		  
 
10. Assoc. Prof. Prayad Komaratat
Ph.D. (U. Ottawa, 1974)


(1998-2002) 		11. Prof. Prapon Wilairat
Ph.D. (Oregon U., 1974)


(2002-2004) 		12. Assoc. Prof. Sumalee Tungpradapkul
Ph.D. (Vrije Univ. Brussels, 1994)


(2004-2008)		  
 
13. Assoc. Prof. Mathurose Ponglikitmongkol
Ph.D. (Louis Pasteur, 1989)


(2008-2009) 		     
Cousins R.J. and Olson J.A. (1996) James Smith Dinning (1922–1991) J. Nutr. 126, 2461-2465. (Biographical Article)

Fact and figures of the Department :

Staff and Department
1. Department is ranked #1 among the Biochemistry Department in Thailand.
2. Department produces the highest number of publication among other Biochemistry Departments in Thailand.
3. Departmental Staff won prestigious awards more than other Biochemistry Departments.
4. Departmental Staff attract more than 5 million baht annual.
5. Offer cutting edge research training both in basic and applied science.

Students
1 . PhD students publish their work in top ranking journals
2 . All PhD students are supported by scholarships from the RGJ-PhD, CHE- or research grant fund scholarship.
3 . All PhD students have 6-month or so experience working in world class laboratories.
4 . All M.Sc. students are funded by the Department or Faculty of Science.
5. All graduate students have their excellent positions as academic staff, research associate or postdoctoral fellow overseas.

Publications