Apichai Tuanyok,
Associate Professor
On This Page
Teaching Profile
Courses Taught
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VME6905 – Problems in Veterinary Medical Sciences
College of Veterinary Medicine
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VEM5571 – Emerging Diseases
College of Veterinary Medicine
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VME6464 – Molecular Pathogenesis
College of Veterinary Medicine
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GMS7980 – Research for Doctoral Dissertation
College of Medicine
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VME7979 – Advanced Research
College of Veterinary Medicine
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VEM5991 – Clkship Indiv Invest
College of Veterinary Medicine
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VME6933 – Seminar in Infectious Diseases and Experimental Pathology
College of Veterinary Medicine
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VME6934 – Topics in Veterinary Medical Sciences
College of Veterinary Medicine
Teaching Philosophy
While enrolled at a university, students can obtain knowledge in several different ways. The most common way is via typical, structured teaching sessions in a lecture hall or a teaching laboratory. However, in most research-intensive departments, such as the Department of Infectious Diseases and Immunology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at UF, mentoring is another common way for graduate students to obtain new knowledge. I learned to be prepared as a classroom teacher twenty-one years ago. As part of this process, I worked as a full-time lecturer at Mahidol University in Thailand. I taught the Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (DTM&H) – Tropical Hygiene course to 50 international professional students in the 2000/2001 academic year. This course covered etiology, environmental and nutritional impacts, epidemiology, and disease control and prevention of tropical diseases. I learned to be a laboratory teacher when I was a research faculty at Northern Arizona University. Coaching graduate students in a laboratory was different from a classroom setting. It required not only knowledge of the subject being studied, but also the hands-on experience that helped students to solve technical problems they faced. The problem-based learning approach was used to solve an open-ended problem in their study that could drive their motivation and learning. Being open to discussion is a key of this learning process and I encourage it. As a course coordinator in the veterinary professional program at UF, my teaching goal has changed to adapt to a new environment and responsibility. I ensure that our course supports the college’s mission in preparing the next generations of veterinarians for broad veterinary career paths; in my view, one of the most important career paths for them is becoming veterinarians in public health.
Research Profile
I was trained as a medical microbiologist in the laboratories of Dr. Donald Woods at the University of Calgary and Dr. Paul Keim at Northern Arizona University for a total of 9 years before becoming an independent researcher. I have studied various aspects of melioidosis and glanders, from diagnostics to therapeutic and vaccine developments. I have learned “One Health”, a collaborative multidisciplinary approach to improve health outcomes by recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, and ecosystems. The One Health paradigm has been used in most of my studies to better understand the public health and biodefense aspects of both diseases. Most of my publications are with a particular focus on population genetics, genomics, and pathogenesis. These focused areas require extensive knowledge about the pathogens and the genetic databases. I was among a few researchers who published most of B. pseudomallei and B. mallei genomes through GenBank, the NIH genetic sequence database. Being an expert in these fields, I was frequently asked to provide insights on the pathogens’ genetics and genomics, and to be included as a co-author on the manuscripts.
After joining the College of Veterinary Medicine at UF in October 2014, I have begun studying the veterinary aspects of both diseases. Since both B. pseudomallei and B. mallei are classified as Tier 1 biothreat agents that require special permits and biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) containment for research in the US, my research is of interest to, and funded by, the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security. I believe that my areas of specialization have provided a unique contribution to UF’s portfolio.
Areas of Interest
- Burkholderia mallei (Glanders) vaccine development
- Burkholderia pseudomallei – genotype classification, effective treatment and early diagnosis of Melioidosis and its impact on Southeast Asia
- Molecular genetics and biology of pathogenic bacteria and their drug resistance
Publications
Academic Articles
Grants
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Development of Versatile and Cost-Effective Next-Generation Vaccines through Multivalent Approaches.
Active
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- UNIV COLLEGE DUBLIN NTL UNIV OF IRELAND via MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
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Discovery of Bacteriophages that Mediate Antimicrobial Susceptibility Trough Efflux Pump Dependent Infection
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY via DEFENSE THREAT REDUCTION AGENCY
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Membrane bound Burkholderia pseudomallei PenA beta-lactamase
- Role:
- Faculty
- Funding:
- NATL INST OF HLTH NIAID
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Molecular Surveillance of Ceftazidime (CAZ) Resistance in Melioidosis
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- CRDF GLOBAL
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Eco-environmental signatures of danger to identify melioidosis-endemic hotzones.
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- UNIV OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES via DEFENSE THREAT REDUCTION AGENCY
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Modulation of Burkholderia pseudomallei immune responses by human-like T cell epitopes.
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- CUBRC via DEFENSE THREAT REDUCTION AGENCY
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Antigenic protein and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) signatures from Burkholderia pseudomallei and B. mallei towards specific biothreat detection strategies.
- Role:
- Principal Investigator
- Funding:
- NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY via US DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Education
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PhD
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, University of Liverpool
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BSc. (Second Class Honor) in Biology
Prince of Songkla University, Thailand
Contact Details
- Business:
- (352) 294-8269
- Business:
- tuanyok@ufl.edu
- Business Mailing:
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1945 SW 16TH AVE
GAINESVILLE FL 32608 - Business Street:
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1945 SW 16TH AVE
GAINESVILLE FL 32608