EGG-NEWS notes the sad passing of Dr. Peter Woolcock who spent 22 years with the California Laboratory Diagnostic System in both Fresno and Davis before retirement in 2013.
A native of Great Britain, Dr. Woolcock received undergraduate degrees from Birmingham University and a doctorate in microbiology from Leeds University in 1974. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1986 and assumed the position of Senior Research Associate at the Cornell University Duck Research Laboratory. He joined CAHFS-Fresno as an avian virologist in 1991 transferring to the Davis laboratory in 2009.
He provided specialist virology services to the West Coast industry applying then current procedures. Dr. Woolcock was noted for his expertise and willingness to assist poultry health professionals and academics with diagnostic virology and applied research projects. His expertise was in isolating viruses responsible for clinical outbreaks of disease followed by characterization applying classical laboratory techniques. His skills were instrumental in identifying a highly virulent strain of IBDV in the late 1980s facilitating eradication. Some of his isolates from field cases were used as vaccine candidates and for autogenous products.
His enthusiastic cooperation with the profession will be missed.