C. J. Peters

Clarence James Peters, Jr(born September 23, 1940,Midland, Texas) is aphysician,fieldvirologistand former U.S. Armycolonel.He is noted for his efforts in trying to stem epidemics of exotic infectious diseases such as theEbola virus,Hanta virusandRift Valley fever(RVF). He is an eminent authority on the virology, pathogenesis and epidemiology ofhemorrhagic fever viruses.

Biography

Peters grew up inOdessa, Texas.AtRice University,he initially majored inchemical engineering,but switched to chemistry his junior year after taking courses withThomas Brackett.He obtained his medical degree atJohns Hopkins School of Medicineand served his residency ininternal medicineat theUniversity of Texas Southwestern Medical School.He developed an interest intropical medicineandvirologywhile serving five years as a research associate at theNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseaseintramural laboratory inPanama.Upon returning Stateside, he completed his fellowship inimmunologyat theScripps Clinic and Research Foundation.

He entered active duty in theU.S. Armyand from 1977 through 1992 held several positions at theU.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases(USAMRIID),Fort Detrick,Maryland,where he worked onbiodefenseand hazardous virus research. His positions there ranged from research scientist and Medical Division chief to Disease Assessment Division chief. He led the team that controlled a 1989 Ebola introduction into a monkey facility inReston, Virginia(a story recounted inRichard Preston’s best-selling 1994 bookThe Hot Zone).

From 1992 to 2000 Peters was head of theSpecial Pathogens Branchat theCenters for Disease Controlwhere he investigated hazardous emerging viruses. These included the agent causing the new diseasehantavirus pulmonary syndromein the southwestern US, which he discovered and named. He also led efforts in Africa (Ebola,Marburg,Lassa,Rift Valley fever), Asia (Nipah virusinMalaysia), and South America (Bolivian hemorrhagic fever,hantavirus pulmonary syndrome,Venezuelan equine encephalitis) to control outbreaks.

Since 2000, Peters has been the John Sealy Distinguished University Professor of Tropical and Emerging Virology at theUniversity of Texas Medical Branch(UTMB) at Galveston, where he has an active research program inSARS,Rift Valley fever,and other human pathogens. He is a professor in the department of pathology and in the department of microbiology and immunology. He is a member of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases. He is also director for biodefense at the UTMB Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Peters has published more than 300 papers on research and control of viral diseases including more than 70 publications onRift Valley fevervirus and more than 60 publications onarenaviruses.He has served on numerous committees dealing with disease problems worldwide and has been called back as a consultant to CDC and USAMRIID on influenza, vaccines, and other issues after his departure. He consulted withTaiwanon SARS control.

Current work

Most of Peters' current work in the laboratory deals withBunyaviridae(including thephylogenyofphlebovirusessuch asRift Valley fever(RVF),Arenaviridae(Lassa fever, South American hemorrhagic fevers) and SARS CoV. He runs an active program of human and animal vaccine development for RVF usingreverse genetics.He and his colleagueIlya Frolovare developingalphavirusrepliconvectored RVF vaccines for use in livestock and ultimately in humans. His arenavirus research concentrates on the effects of infection on cellular function, particularly those molecular interactions related to vascular permeability. SARS-CoV work includes antiviral drug development, model characterization, and interferon interactions. TheGalveston National Laboratory,aBiosafety Level 4laboratory, opened in 2008 at the University of Texas Medical Branch to allow scientists there to work safely with any pathologic agent. Peters expects to transition some projects to higher hazard viral hemorrhagic fevers and to develop projects on other viruses such as tick-borneflaviviruses,highly virulentavian influenzastrains, and Nipah virus, a new, highly virulentparamyxovirus.

References

• Peters, C. J. andMark Olshaker(1998),Virus Hunter: Thirty Years of Battling Hot Viruses Around the World,Random House.

Further reading

• Peters, C.J. (2014)."Forty Years with Emerging Viruses".Annual Review of Virology.1(1): 1–23.doi:10.1146/annurev-virology-031413-085401.PMID26958712.