Dr. Rukshan, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of New England (UNE), specializes in Microbiology & Immunology of infectious diseases. He earned his BSc from the University of Mysore, India, and MPhil in Virology from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. Completing his PhD at UNE, he currently focuses on characterising an Animal model of Acute Rheumatic Fever/Rheumatic Heart Disease (ARF/RHD) to study early disease events. His research includes pre-clinical safety assessment of candidate vaccines, identifying biomarkers, and developing treatment modalities for ARF/RHD. With over 10 years of experience, Dr. Rukshan’s expertise spans various areas, including epidemiology of respiratory viruses, hepatitis B, and post-streptococcal autoimmune complications.