Puey Ounjai Ph.D.

Puey Ounjai, Ph.D. is a scientist, teacher, artist and journalist…

Puey Ounjai is a biophysicist and biotechnologist hailing from Bangkok, Thailand. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology from the King Mongkut Institute of Technology, Ladkrabang before pursuing his PhD in Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering at Mahidol University. During the course of his doctoral research, he spent three years as a postgraduate visiting fellow at Yale University in the laboratory of Prof. Fred J Sigworth and later served as a postdoctoral researcher at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Furthering his research pursuits, he undertook another postdoctoral position at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California where he continued to work as a scientist for a year.

Puey returned to Thailand in 2013 and joined Mahidol University as a lecturer in Biology. His passion for sharing knowledge and insights led him to take the stage at TEDxChiangMai in 2014, where he delivered a captivating talk titled “The Aesthetics of Practicing Sciences.” This talk resonated deeply within the Thai school community and served as an inspiration to numerous Thai students. Along with a group of exceptional students, alumni, and fellow faculty members, Puey co-organized TEDxMahidolU in 2017 and 2018. Additionally, he was an invited speaker for Pint of Science events in 2018 and 2020. Puey has been actively involved as a speaker in various scientific events, showcasing his expertise and passion for his field.

Puey’s dedication to advancing scientific knowledge is further demonstrated through his significant contributions to scientific literature. Puey was promoted to Assistant Professor in 2017 and was serving as the Head of the Center of Nano-imaging at the Faculty of Science from 2017-2023.  To date, Puey has published over 50 peer-reviewed publications. Moreover, in 2018, he collaborated with his students, Ponlawoot Raksat and Kanpong Boonthaworn, to co-found the Biology Education and Entertainment Research (BEER) group. This initiative aimed to create online training courses and blogs in Toxicology, specifically catering to high school teachers and students. Puey and his team also co-authored a comic book titled “Toxicants and where to find them” in the same year, aiming to engage and educate the public about toxicology-related subjects.

Puey is an accomplished author and scientific journalist, earning recognition for his literary work. His book  “Vaccine War–Battlefield against COVID-19“ stood as a finalist for the prestigious National Book Award in Thailand in 2022. Puey has played a pivotal role as an editor for the Thai translation of the “Virus: A Very Short Introduction” and has contributed as a Thai translator for “Infectious Diseases: A Very Short Introduction” and “The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race”.

His new pop-sci book “Ani-More – Beyond Zooscience” was debut in August 2023.

Puey’s influence also reaches the broader public, as he is a columnist and a regular contributor to various mass media outlets including Matichon Weekly, Bangkok Business News, Sarakadee Magazine and Sarawit eMagazine. At current, Puey has published over 500 featured stories and essays in newspapers and magazines. 

 Beyond his accomplishments in the field of academia and journalism, Puey has shown dedication to promoting education and knowledge dissemination. Puey joined as a working committee member of the Thai Junior Encyclopedia Foundation, established under the auspices of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, stands as a testament to his commitment to serving society and fostering learning opportunities for future generations.

Puey was the recipient of the exemplary lecturer award from the Faculty club of Mahidol University, Faculty of  Science, Mahidol University in 2020, the national research award (distinguish level of honor) in the category of innovation an invention (chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences) in 2021. Puey was bestowed with the distinguish alumni award from the Institute of Molecular Bioscience, Mahidol University and the prestigious “National Science Teacher Award” of Thailand in 2022. And in 2023, Puey received Mahidol Science Communicator Award from Faculty of  Science, Mahidol University.